TOOLKIT AFRICAN AMERICAN GRANDFAMILIES: HELPING CHILDREN THRIVE THROUGH CONNECTION TO FAMILY AND CULTURE Photo by Stuart Kandell. TOOLKIT INTRODUCTION...... 4
CHAPTER 1: Understanding and Creating Culturally Appropriate Services for African American Grandfamilies ...... 6
CHAPTER 2: Overview of Grandfamilies...... 12
CHAPTER 3: Impact of Parental Separation...... 16
CHAPTER 4: Benefits and Strengths of Preserving and Restoring Cultural Identity...... 21
CHAPTER 5: Strategies for Providing Culturally Appropriate Services. . . . 24
CHAPTER 6: Helpful Services...... 35
CHAPTER 7: Federal Child Welfare Laws That Prioritize and Support Relative Connections...... 43
CHAPTER 8: Advocacy...... 48
RECOMMENDATIONS...... 57
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS...... 60 Toolkit Introduction
It is not our differences that divide us . It is our inability to recognize, accept, and celebrate those differences .
Audre Lorde, African American writer, feminist, librarian and civil rights activist
oth inside and outside the child welfare agencies and nonprofit organizations, so they can system, the probability that African American better serve all African American grandfamilies. Bchildren will live in grandfamilies is more than It will explore some of the unique strengths and double that of the overall population, with one in challenges of these grandfamilies, which agencies five African American children living in grandfamilies and organizations need to recognize in order to at some point during their childhood.1 provide culturally appropriate supportive services.
Over the last few decades, drug epidemics, Kinship care is an age-old and traditional practice hurricanes and other tragedies have both created in African American families. What is new is the African American grandfamilies and challenged creation of institutional support systems to assist existing ones. The COVID-19 pandemic is the latest such caregivers. African American grandparents such crisis. As of mid-May 2020, African Americans have had a historical caregiving role from in almost every state collecting racial data have slavery to the current day. Indeed, they have higher rates of infection and death from COVID-19 consistently provided the emotional and financial than whites or Latinos.2 Despite these most support needed to ensure the well-being of their fundamental threats to health and mortality, African grandchildren when parents are working or absent. Americans retain their commitment and cultural Professor Sandra Edmonds Crewe states that pride in caring for extended family. “understanding African American elders caring for grandchildren is complex and reflects unique There has been a historic lack of supports and cultural, environmental, and institutional factors.”3 services for African American grandfamilies, In 1939, the eminent sociologist E. Franklin Frazier particularly supports and services that are culturally described black grandmothers as “guardians of appropriate. This absence of supports has become generations” in his seminal book, The Negro Family all the more apparent during the COVID-19 public in the United States.4 Frazier’s book was the first health emergency. The supports and services that comprehensive study of African American family do exist often depend on whether the children are life, beginning with colonial-era slavery, extending in the legal custody of the child welfare system with through the years of slavery and emancipation, their kin providing the care or whether they are not to the impact of Jim Crow and migrations to both at all involved with that system. southern and northern cities in the twentieth While considering these differences in support, century. Significant remnants of these latter this toolkit is designed to give resources and challenging periods of African American history still tips to child welfare agencies, other government resound as segregation and discrimination remain.
4 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture While there is a tradition of African American grandfamilies, understanding how individuals and kinship care, factors such as parental substance use systems need to provide appropriate and effective and disproportionate incarceration have changed services within the current environment is essential. the landscape and needs of these caregivers and We hope this toolkit provides you with useful children. Given the substantial, expanded and resources. disproportionate number of African American
Grandfamilies and Kinship Families – In this toolkit, we use the terms “grandfamilies” and “kinship families” interchangeably to mean families in which grandparents, other adult family members or close family friends are raising children with no parents in the home. These families can be either inside or outside the child welfare system, and the toolkit will distinguish the level of child welfare involvement where it is relevant.
Grandfamily Caregiver or Kin Caregiver – These terms are also used interchangeably in this toolkit. They are used to capture the spectrum of these TOOLKIT TERMS caregiving relationships, which include close family friends, godparents and other adults who are not technically “related” to the child.
African American – The term “African American” is used intentionally as the focus of this toolkit is on African Americans, meaning Americans of black African descent. The toolkit does not address all of the diverse black populations living in the United States. However, many of the resources and tips in this toolkit will apply to the broader population of black grandfamilies and grandfamilies in general.
Photo by TOOLKIT INTRODUCTION 5 Tyeshaun Graham. Chapter 1
Understanding and Creating Culturally Appropriate Services for African American Grandfamilies
Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity .
Rev . Dr . Martin Luther King, civil rights activist
Introduction • Culturally Appropriate work practices would be non-discriminatory and free of bias, This chapter provides recommendations and stereotyping, racism and prejudice. resources for government agencies and nonprofit • Cultural Awareness is the ability of a person to organizations to develop and provide culturally understand the differences between themselves appropriate services to African American kinship and people from other backgrounds, especially families. Cultural differences are a fact of life. differences in attitudes and values. Recognizing, acknowledging and providing services • Cultural Competence is a set of congruent that address these differences are not. Essential in behaviors, attitudes, and policies that come this helping process is the recognition that African together in a system, agency or among American kin caregivers’ cultural context, assets, professionals and enable that system, agency or challenges, needs, and values are deeply ingrained those professionals to work effectively in cross- in a discriminatory history of institutional racism cultural situations. that impacts their role as caregivers. Though African • Cultural Humility is the ability to maintain an American grandfamilies are not new, there are interpersonal stance that is other-oriented (or significant cultural and environmental influences open to the other) in relation to aspects of that have shaped and affected how our current cultural identity that are most important to the African American kinship caregivers must now person.5 negotiate and navigate their caregiving role. • Cultural Intelligence or CQ is a “globally There are no universally accepted definitions of the recognized way of assessing and improving concept of culturally appropriate services. These effectiveness in culturally diverse situations.”6 terms suggest some nuances for cultural knowledge Effective cultural intelligence gives one the and/or service delivery that meet the needs of ability to relate and work effectively within diverse populations. The following definitions diverse populations and extends beyond provide context for this Toolkit. just cultural sensitivity and awareness to the
6 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture implementation of appropriate, strategic and access to resources and their ability to navigate innovative actions for each targeted group. bureaucracy for the benefit of children in their care is not as compromised. Recognizing the changing dynamics of our world and providing culturally appropriate/competent For caregivers living in poverty, any dependence services is a developmental process that is evolving on the social welfare system may compromise their where individuals and organizations are on a independence and their ability to provide for their continuum of awareness, knowledge and skills. children.9 Kinship care provider agencies must focus These services must also recognize that the African on not only the availability of resources but how American community is socioeconomically and caregivers perceive the benefits of participation in culturally diverse, but some cultural norms are any program support system. This becomes very prevalent across this diversity as discussed below. evident in why some African American caregivers steer away from the financial supports provided Importance of Religion and Spirituality through the child welfare system; they do not want people in their “business,” or they cannot meet the The expression of spirituality and religion was standards of care that would be required to receive critical to the survival of slaves and remains an benefits.10 essential component for many African American kinship caregivers to cope with adversity. During Relationships Between Birth Parents and slavery and now, the religious practice provided Kinship Caregivers an outlet for the expression of pain, suffering, anger, humiliation, injustice and more, while still A critical part of provider services requires maintaining hope and strength.7 Current day African supporting kinship caregivers in their relationship Americans express their faith through multiple with the children’s birth parents, one of whom is religions and spiritual groups including African often their daughter or son. Since informal kinship Methodist Episcopal, Roman Catholic, Lutheran, has always existed among African American Presbyterian, Baptist, Episcopalian, varied Islamic grandfamilies, the children typically had contact sects, Jewish denominations, Pentecostal, Jehovah’s with their parents and other family members who Witness, Seventh Day Adventist, and Buddhism. informally co-parented. If the child welfare system With these diverse religious practices, kinship becomes part of this family dynamic, kinship care service providers need to recognize how any caregivers must adhere to new restrictions and caregiver addresses their caregiving role through constraints on the birth parents’ interaction with their spiritual lens and limitations that their religion the kinship family. Child welfare agencies should may place upon how they live their daily life (e.g., support the children, birth parents and caregivers food preferences, clothing selection, celebrations, while the children are in foster care with the goal of counseling, marriage, child discipline, gender roles, reunification of children and parents. If reunification workday exclusions).8 No assumptions should be cannot be a permanency goal, agencies should made based on African American heritage alone. proactively help families plan for birth parents’ The socioeconomic status of the caregiver will post-permanency involvement in the event the determine their level of need and support. kinship caregiver adopts or gets guardianship of the children. Socioeconomic Differences Most children cared for by relatives will likely have Though there is a longstanding tradition of African some level of contact with their birth parents over American kinship networks taking care of children, time. The integration of the birth parents into their the plight of such a kinship caregiver depends on children’s lives can present many challenges. Child their socioeconomic status. For African American welfare experts suggest a facilitated process that caregivers who are not living in poverty, their recognizes the following:11
CHAPTER 1 7 • Ongoing family issues that impact multiple life conditions separating birth parents from their generations. children. A Second Chance Inc. is one of the few • Unresolved familial issues that may impede or national program models that engages the triad for derail permanency planning. short- and long-term benefit for all parties. • Need for resolution of the issues that led to the placement in the first place. Effects of Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome • Recognition of the feelings of failure by the From slavery to now, African Americans have kinship caregiver and birth parents. developed adaptive survival behaviors to address • Need for some kinship caregivers to have racial disparities in the United States. Post Traumatic another chance at parenting to get it right. Slave Syndrome (PTSS), a theory espoused by • Role differentiation between kinship caregiver Dr. Joy DeGruy from extensive quantitative and and birth parents. qualitative research, is described as a consequence These kinship care issues must be addressed from of multigenerational oppression of Africans a triad-centric perspective: the child/youth, the and their descendants of slavery based on the relative caregiver and the birth parents and the belief that African Americans were inherently/ relationships among them. Such a perspective genetically inferior to whites.12 This faulty belief addresses African American multigenerational evolved into institutionalized racism as it exists trauma and recognizes the enduring legacy of today. Understanding PTSS not only explains the slavery and racism that resulted in unfortunate residual effects of generations of slavery in the
A SECOND CHANCE, INC.
A Second Chance, Inc. (ASCI), is a nonprofit corporation in Pennsylvania that is designed to meet the unique needs of kinship care families, while providing culturally appropriate services to African American children. Its stated mission is to provide a safe, secure and nurturing environment to children in the care of relatives or close family friends.
ASCI opened its doors in 1994 after recognizing that kinship families needed an approach that was different from the way traditional foster care is provided. ASCI believes that, as a culturally based strength within the African American community, kinship care in the child welfare system is the most respectful way to reduce and eventually eliminate disparities in placements linked to race and ethnicity across the continuum of service. The use of PROGRAM PROFILE kinship care spans every culture, and as such, is applicable to every child welfare system. ASCI has formalized this tradition through its programs.
ASCI specializes in child welfare-involved kinship families and is able to license 93 percent of its families so that they have access to needed financial support, while providing parents with services to help them regain custody of their children. ASCI also assigns different social workers to work with the caregiver and the parent to ensure that immediate service needs, as well as longer-term reunification and permanency goals, are being met. The Department of Human Services in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania now places more than 60 percent of the children in foster care with kin and achieves permanence in 89 percent of its cases.
8 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture CHRISTINE BENSLIMEN, PENNSYLVANIA GRAND VOICE
In her bustling Philadelphia home, Ms. Christine Benslimen, is all of these things— grandmother, aunt, cousin and foster mother—to the four children and youth whom she is raising.
“I just love all of my babies,” gushes Ms. Benslimen whose home and big heart are always open and willing to welcome in one more child or relative if it means keeping them connected to family, out of the system, and in a safe and nurturing environment. Her story is much like that of the children she cares for. At just 10 months old, Christine Benslimen, who is African American, was placed with kin when her young mother couldn’t care for her. The doting, older couple raised Ms. Benslimen as their own. When she turned five, Ms. Benslimen returned to live with her birth mother. The caregivers
that she called aunt and uncle, “taught me everything I know about loving, nurturing GRANDFAMILY PROFILE and disciplining children,” and the power of kinship care. Over the years, Ms. Benslimen has stepped up to “care for plenty of relatives, without any financial or other support.”
But being connected to agencies like A Second Chance, Inc., has taught caregivers like Ms. Benslimen that they aren’t alone on the journey. And her advocacy on behalf of other grandfamily caregivers is transformative. When she first became a member of the GRAND Voices national network of caregivers - which Generations United manages and runs with support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Casey Family Programs - Ms. Benslimen said, “That’s why I’m so eager to use the GRAND Voices platform. I want to tell other African American caregivers don’t be ashamed to ask for the help that they need, or fear losing their grandchildren to the system because they are struggling.” Whether it is meal planning, medical assistance, finding Pampers, clothes, or car seats, says Ms. Benslimen, help is available for kinship caregivers.
African American community, but the possibility of • Marked Propensity for Anger and Violence: how age-old adaptive behaviors result in using the Extreme feelings of suspicion, perceived strengths of the past to heal the present. She notes negative motivations of others, violence that there are some key PTSS behavior patterns in against self, property, and others, including African Americans that may be exhibited: the members of one’s own group, e.g., friends, • Vacant Esteem: Insufficient development relatives or acquaintances. of primary esteem, along with feelings of • Racist Socialization and Internalized Racism: hopelessness, depression, and a general self- Learned helplessness, literacy deprivation, destructive outlook. distorted self-concept, antipathy or aversion. These factors may account for some behaviors attributable to African Americans and should be considered when working with African American kinship families.
Photo courtesy of CHAPTER 1 9 Christine Benslimen. Intra-Cultural Beauty Issues within the Colorism: This is the “prejudice or discrimination African American Community especially within a racial or ethnic group favoring people with lighter skin over those with Understanding African American cultural norms can darker skin.”14 Print and electronic media have help you to better reach, engage, communicate and perpetuated colorism in their representation of serve these kinship caregivers. African American African Americans. Actress Keke Palmer said, kinship families reflect the history of slavery, racism, “Hollywood highlighted some barriers when it discrimination, segregation, and disenfranchisement comes to colorism. Growing up, I didn’t see people that remain part of American culture. This internal with my complexion at the forefront of being cultural history holds both positive and negative shown as beautiful. I only saw one representation messages about the self-image of these families. of beauty and that was of a black person with a Some key longstanding messages stem from a lighter complexion.”15 Such color preferences also tradition of African Americans adopting Caucasian manifested themselves in early African American standards of beauty. Being a light-skinned African magazine editions, such as Ebony and Jet, where American with straight hair and keen facial features only light-skin models were featured on their (narrow nose, thin lips) was a Caucasian standard covers.16 The “Brown Paper Bag Test” was an of beauty that discriminated against dark-skinned extension of colorism by comparing an individual’s persons with nappy hair, big lips and noses. The skin tone to the color of a brown paper bag. If more that African Americans looked like white their skin color matched or was lighter than a people, the more preferential they were to whites as brown paper bag they were allowed admission or well as their own community. This representation of membership privileges to sororities, fraternities, and beauty is a remnant of slavery where black female churches.17 slaves were impregnated by their white masters resulting in more Caucasian-looking children who Good Hair versus Bad Hair: The idea of good hair were often allowed to stay within the master’s house derived from slavery where black women slaves and received preferential treatment. The “Black Is were made to feel and believe that their naturally Beautiful” movement in the 1960s assured African kinky hair was bad hair and good hair was straight American women and men that their skin, facial and flowing like white women. During the 1960s, features, and natural hair were indeed beautiful and African American people began to proudly wear should not be compared with other cultures. their hair in their natural state, and this proliferated in the 2000s. Many individuals of African The following descriptions provide some key descent gave up relaxing their hair with chemical context about relevant beauty norms in this straighteners and allowed it to grow naturally. These community. It is important to understand these natural hairstyles vary by the use of braids, hair intra-cultural norms to make sense of potential twists and dreadlocks, which are now common in preferences that some grandparents and other the African American community and reflect the relatives may have among the children they raise. adoption of non-Caucasian beauty norms. Some older African American kinship caregivers may be more likely to show a preference for the “Negroid” Features: Features such as a wider nose white standards of beauty. Historically, some African and bigger lips were seen as typical for the Negroid American parents and grandparents may have race. Like colorism and good hair versus bad hair, favored their children who most approximated white these facial features were seen as inferior to the beauty due to their own internalized prejudices or keen features of Caucasians. African Americans with may have felt compelled to favor these children more keen noses and lips were seen as preferential because of the greater opportunities they were because they approximated white beauty standards. afforded in mainstream white society.13
10 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture CROWN Act: Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair provides protection against discrimination based on hairstyles by extending statutory protection to hair texture and protective styles in the Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA) and state Education Codes. The CROWN Act is already law in California, New York, and New Jersey. The legislation has been introduced in more than 20 states. www.thecrownact.com
Good Hair is a 2009 American documentary film directed by Jeff Stilson and produced by Chris Rock. The film focuses on the issue of how African American women have perceived and styled their hair and their relation to African American culture.
Hair Love is a 2019 American animated Oscar-winning short film was written and directed by Matthew A. Cherry and co-produced with Karen Rupert Toliver. It follows the story of an African American man who must do his daughter’s hair for the first time. He struggles with her thick natural locks but succeeds with the help of an online video. www.youtube.com/watch?v=kNw8V_Fkw28
Racial Stress and Self Care: Parent Tip Toolkit from the American Psychological Association explores how race-related stress affects caregiving relationships and gives tips for how to mitigate it. www.apa.org/res/parent-resources/racial-stress-tool-kit.pdf
Stay Woke: The Black Lives Matter Movement is a 2016 documentary that discusses this international activist movement, originating in the African American community, which campaigns against violence and systemic racism towards black people. www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIoYtKOqxeU
Why Develop a Culturally Sensitive Approach to Social Work with African American Clients by Janice Hawkins, Ph.D., LMSW in The New Social Worker discusses cultural differences that may impede a social worker’s ability to build rapport with African American clients and explains how a culturally sensitive approach mitigates these challenges. www.socialworker.com/feature-articles/practice/why-develop-a-culturally-sensitive- approach RESOURCES
Working with African American Adoptive, Foster and Kinship Families from AdoptUSKids assists child welfare caseworkers in understanding and engaging historical and cultural aspects of African American clients. https://adoptuskids.org/_assets/files/NRCRRFAP/resources/working-with-African American-families.pdf
CHAPTER 1 11 Chapter 2
Overview of Grandfamilies
I am where I am today because my grandmother gave me the foundation for success .
Oprah Winfrey, African American media executive, actress, talk show host and philanthropist; raised by her grandmother
Introduction example, African Americans are incarcerated at more than five times the rate of whites, and the Approximately 2.7 million children in the United imprisonment rate for African American women is States live in grandfamilies or kinship families, twice that of white women.21 African Americans are meaning families in which grandparents, other adult also twice as likely to live in poverty as whites.22 family members or close family friends are raising Systemic racism, along with these factors, can result children with no parents in the home.18 An additional in African Americans having more contact with 139,000 children, almost a third of all children in the the child welfare system.23 As Ms. Carlyn Hicks, an foster care system, are in the legal custody of the African American Parent Attorney and Certified system with their kin providing the care.19 Child Welfare Law Specialist, powerfully notes: “If you live in a certain zip code, it’s not if CPS (Child A disproportionate number of children in Protective Services) knocks on your door, it’s when.” grandfamilies are African American. While African Once child welfare is involved, despite higher rates American children make up 14 percent of all children of substance use among African American mothers in the United States, they comprise over 25 percent than white mothers, services are not often easily of all children in grandfamilies and 23 percent of accessible or available to African American parents, 20 all children in foster care. The long history in the so their case plans may be negatively impacted, United States of slavery, segregation, economic which can cause additional adverse involvement injustice, and institutional racism contributes to this with the child welfare system.24 overrepresentation in the foster care system, and likely also contributes to the larger percentage of Whether inside or outside the child welfare African American children in all grandfamilies. system, the dramatically disproportionate numbers of African American children in kinship care In general, grandfamilies, whether inside or outside do not even include the 7.9 million children in the foster care system, form because of parental multigenerational households where grandparents substance use, incarceration, death, teenage and other relatives are the heads of the household, pregnancy, poverty, mental illness, and cognitive and the child’s parents may also be present in the or physical disability. Some of these factors impact home or use the home periodically.25 For some African Americans at higher rates than whites. For multigenerational households, every family member
12 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture plays an important role. For other multigenerational Child Trauma: The children in grandfamilies are families, the parents are not able to parent the more likely than the general population of children child due to one or more of the many factors to have social, emotional, physical and behavioral causing grandfamilies to form. About 26 percent challenges. This is often due to the many traumatic of all African Americans live in multigenerational and difficult reasons parents are unable to raise homes, and anecdotal evidence demonstrates that their children. Children have frequently been grandparents act as the parents in many of these exposed to drugs or alcohol in utero and many families.26 have special needs.32 Unlike white youth, African American youth with behavioral or other challenges While the disproportionate number of African are much more likely to end up in juvenile justice American grandfamilies is likely a product of the facilities. For African Americans, the rate is 383 per many inequities African Americans continue to face, 100,000 youth, whereas the same rate for whites it is also a reflection of the community’s strength is significantly less, at 83 youth per 100,000.33 and resilience. Caregivers are typically acutely aware of the Grandfamilies’ Strengths disparate treatment by law enforcement and the courts for the African American children they raise. African American grandfamilies have a long and proud cultural tradition of caring for extended Caregiver Stress: In addition to that unique stress, family, dating back to their ancestors on the African kin caregivers may be stressed because they are continent. This strength, along with many others, are caring for children at a time in their lives they did well documented in research and show that children not expect to be, and they are often socially isolated thrive in grandfamilies, and specifically in African from their peers.34 They may feel a sense of shame American grandfamilies. Decades of research and guilt about their own adult children who are comparing the outcomes of children in foster care unable to parent.35 with relatives to those in foster care with non- Grandfamily Poverty: Generally, children in relatives demonstrate just how well children fare in grandfamilies are more likely to be poor, with the kin care. Children in foster care with kin have more highest poverty rates among African American stable and safe childhoods with a greater likelihood children being raised by single grandmothers. About of having a permanent home.27 About 36 percent of 18.4 percent of children in the general population all children adopted from foster care are adopted by live in poverty, as compared to 30.5 percent of relatives and 11 percent of children who exit foster care, exit into guardianships.28 Moreover, children children whose grandparents are responsible 36 in foster care with kin are less likely to re-enter the for them and have no parent in the home. The foster care system after returning to birth parents.29 percentage of children living in poverty increases These children experience fewer school changes, even more dramatically for children who live with have better behavioral and mental health outcomes, a grandmother only. About 48 percent of children and are more likely to report that they “always who live with a grandmother only are poor, and feel loved.”30 Children living with kin keep their approximately 42 percent of these children are 37 connections to brothers, sisters, extended family African American. and community, and cultural identity.31 Limited Services and Supports: Despite heroically Grandfamilies’ Challenges stepping up to raise children that they did not expect or plan to raise, kin caregivers often face As with their many strengths, African American challenges accessing critical services for the grandfamilies also share challenges that are similar children. The degree of challenge frequently differs to those of other grandfamilies. However, unique depending on whether or not the child is part of the injustices make African American kinship caregiving child welfare system. that much more difficult.
CHAPTER 2 13 • Children with kin in the child welfare system: the children or a foster care placement of For those children in the child welfare system them, caregivers can have trouble enrolling the and living with kin, access to services and children in school, accessing special education supports can be easier than for those not in services, consenting to vaccinations and health the formal system. The state generally has legal care, obtaining health insurance coverage, and custody of the children in kinship foster care, finding affordable housing suitable for the so caseworkers and judges can facilitate entry children. into services, like educational enrollment, and A legal relationship is not required under benefits such as nutrition assistance. However, federal law to access the array of public the foster care system is not supporting the benefits and income supports that may be kin caregivers or the children as they should, available. However, access can be challenging despite relying on kin more than ever with a for other reasons. For example, to obtain a 10-percentage point increase in the last decade. Temporary Assistance for Needy Families The system often places children with kin as (TANF) child-only grant, which is often the “kinship foster parents” without licensing them only source of potential ongoing support or providing the children in their care anywhere for the children, caregivers typically have to near the same level of assistance as children assign to the state their right to collect child in non-relative foster care. Newly released support from the parents. Caregivers often data compiled and analyzed by The Chronicle do not want to pose another problem for of Social Change show that the number of the parents who are trying to re-parent or children living in a home without a foster care the caregivers may fear retaliation from the maintenance payment increased by 32 percent parents. The federal government allows states between 2011 and 2017, from 81,838 to 108,426 to waive that assignment for good cause, but children.38 The Chronicle analysts believe these few jurisdictions actually have a clear practice children are primarily, if not exclusively, in that allows caregivers to access that exemption. kinship foster care with either grandparents, TANF and Medicaid for the child are often other relatives or close family friends who are linked, so restricting access to one can impact not licensed foster parents.39 If kin were fully the other. Other federal supports, like the licensed, long-standing federal law requires Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program that the children in their care receive monthly (SNAP) or “food stamps,” require caregivers foster care maintenance payments, services, to share a lot of information, including their and a pathway to supported permanency income. In many cases, it may be retirement through Guardianship Assistance Programs and income that is too high to qualify for SNAP, adoption subsidies.40 even though the children are at risk of food insecurity. Grandfamilies have often not been • Children raised by kin outside the child considered in the design and implementation of welfare system: Children raised by kin outside these supports, and consequently their unique of the child welfare system also face access and needs are not met. equity issues. A major reason impacting their access is that many of these children do not These challenges, in addition to grandfamilies’ have a legal relationship, such as legal custody many strengths, must be considered when striving or guardianship, with their caregivers. They to support the families. Because African American may lack such a relationship for many reasons. kinship families are further impacted by their own Often their caregivers may have difficulty unique set of strengths and challenges, this toolkit finding an affordable lawyer or they may not seeks to help agencies and organizations better want to go through the expense, delay, and understand and support them. To access general trauma of suing the birth parents for such a resources that may be helpful, please visit the relationship. Without a legal relationship to websites listed below.
14 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture The Adoption and Foster Care Analysis and Reporting System (AFCARS) is the national reporting system for children in foster care. Each year, a report is issued on the numbers of children in foster care, including those in foster care with relatives, and the numbers of children exiting the system to guardianships and adoptions. www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/research-data-technology/statistics-research/afcars
The Brookdale Foundation Group, Relatives As Parents (RAPP) is a national network of support groups and services for grandfamilies. www.brookdalefoundation.net/RAPP/rapp.html
Grandfamilies.org is a comprehensive one-stop national website for publications, materials, and laws impacting grandfamilies both inside and outside the foster care system. www.grandfamilies.org
Grandfactsheets.org has fact sheets for each state and the District of Columbia containing specific state information related to grandfamilies, including a comprehensive list of resources and services, including kinship navigator programs. www.grandfactsheets.org
Generations United is Generations United’s website containing resources and publications on grandfamilies, including Generations United’s annual State of Grandfamilies reports. www.gu.org
The Kids Count project — The Annie E. Casey Foundation contains national and state level data on children in kinship care. By kinship care, they mean children outside of the formal foster care system being raised by grandparents, other family members and close family friends with no parents in the home. Children in kinship foster care are reported through AFCARS. www.datacenter.kidscount.org
Racial Disproportionality and Disparity in Child Welfare Issue Brief by the Child Welfare Information Gateway. https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubpdfs/racial_disproportionality.pdf
The U.S. Census Bureau Data Website contains tables with the numbers of children in the
United States and some of their demographic characteristics (Table S0901); the numbers RESOURCES of children and some of their characteristics who are raised by grandparents who are responsible for them (Table S1001), and the same information for these grandparents (Table S1002). The data on other relatives are limited, but the general number of “other relatives” responsible for children is available in Table S0901. Data.census.gov
CHAPTER 2 15 Chapter 3
Impact of Parental Separation
The truth is that we are now a two-family nation, separate and unequal—one thriving and intact, and the other struggling, broken, and far too often African American .
Daniel Moynihan, sociologist, diplomat and politician
Introduction Parental Incarceration
African American children being separated from According to Child Trends, approximately one their parents dates back to slavery. Unfortunately, in every 14 children have or have had a parent this practice continues as African American children incarcerated, and the chances are higher for black are experiencing increased separation due to several children, with one in nine having had a parent 41 debilitating factors. They include drug epidemics in prison. These children experience the same wrenching side effects of trauma that experts report impacting parents who use drugs and then lose their now witnessing in immigrant children being taken children to the child welfare system, crime within the from their parents at the Mexican-U.S. border. While African American community resulting in children many of us are appalled at the immigrant children’s losing their parents to death and/or incarceration, plight, African American children routinely are HIV/AIDS where affected parents are too sick to separated from their parents through the criminal care for their children, and the disproportionate justice system. It happens as a result of arrest/ number of African Americans, primarily male, conviction, incarcerated women given birth behind stereotyped and targeted by the police system, a bars, drug test failures causing probation violations, phenomenon recognized by the Black Lives Matter and court-ordered jailing. The children become movement. Younger kinship caregivers may be more major collateral damage, and many are sent to live mindful of these plights, but not necessarily more with family members. It is especially deleterious prepared to deal with the consequences of them. when mothers are behind bars. Older kinship caregivers may be lost in the frequent Children with incarcerated mothers are five times discussion of these matters. For organizations and more likely to end up in foster care than those with agencies not to recognize these unique experiences incarcerated fathers.42 Like the migrant children, is considered tone-deaf by many in the African some have the potential to be lost. A Dallas Morning American community. This chapter will discuss why News investigation found that children whose African American children are being separated from parents were behind bars had slept in state offices, their parents and what we can do to help reduce the run away from foster homes, and in one case, been deleterious effects of such separation. left to be looked after by a 12-year-old sister. In
16 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture most communities, the newspaper reported, “No may have enduring high rates of trauma from the one in the criminal justice system is responsible deleterious circumstances their parents may have for the safety of children whose mothers go to exposed them to (e.g., drug houses, crime, violence, jail.”43 According to a New York Times report on prostitution, physical abuse, sexual abuse, child data from the mid-2000s, there are over a quarter abuse/neglect). The residuals of substance use for of a million American children estimated to have a an African American child coming from or living in mother in jail, with most detainees awaiting trial and high substance use communities are dire:48 some with minor offenses. Another 150,000 had a • African Americans are more likely than white 44 mother in prison. Since that report, the number of Americans to have an undiagnosed trauma/ incarcerated women has risen. mental illness that goes untreated and often results in depression, anxiety or bipolar There are many more children with incarcerated disorder, which increases one’s risk of using fathers; a staggering one in four African American drugs and alcohol as a coping mechanism. children can expect to have their father incarcerated • Traumatic experiences can lead to before they turn age 14. An NAACP criminal justice posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a mental fact sheet provides some sobering statistics on the health condition that involves severe anxiety overrepresentation and racial disparities of African and is associated with an increased incidence of Americans in jail:45 substance use behavior. • African Americans are incarcerated at more • The availability of drugs in low-income African than five times the rate of whites. American communities with few economic and • The imprisonment rate for African American academic opportunities can also contribute to women is twice that of white women. early drug use. • African Americans and whites use drugs at • Living in areas marked by crime and violence similar rates, but the imprisonment rate of can cause higher levels of stress and African Americans for drug charges is almost posttraumatic reactions, which can increase the six times that of whites. risk for substance use. • Nationwide, African American children The trauma of prior parental substance use does represent 32 percent of children who are not just go away once a child is removed from their arrested, 42 percent of children who are parents and placed in kinship care. Besides the detained, and 52 percent of children whose trauma of living in a substance use environment, cases are judicially waived to criminal court. these children have learned negative and The Annie E. Casey Foundation shed further light positive coping behaviors to mitigate the pain of on the disparate treatment of African American abandonment during their time with their parents youth by the juvenile justice system in statistics and in kinship care. Screening youth for substance released January 2020: About 383 per 100,000 use is a suggested prevention strategy. African American youth reside in juvenile justice facilities, whereas the same rate for white youth is Child Separation and Trauma significantly less, at 83 youth per 100,000.46 The trauma of separation from parents can result The Impact of Substance Use in some dire consequences for children such as ongoing mental health issues, increased aggression, African Americans may be exposed to multiple poor academic performance, depression, and stressors (e.g., poverty, mental illness, systemic substance use. The effects are often long-term. racism) that increase their susceptibility to drug While research repeatedly shows that kinship care is and alcohol use.47 This increase has led to an best for children who cannot live with their parents, overrepresentation of African American children separation from parents is an ongoing issue that in kinship foster care. Children of substance users kinship families must address.
CHAPTER 3 17 While there is a general biological response to For African American grandfamilies, the trauma of trauma, research suggests that cultural factors parental separation can be more complicated than can influence the biopsychosocial experience of for white grandfamilies. Families living in racially trauma and subsequent stress responses. Cultural and economically segregated communities must factors play an important role in each individual’s also cope with the effects of historical trauma, vulnerability to, experience and expression intergenerational racism, and higher crime scenarios. of trauma and response to interventions and According to the National Child Traumatic Stress treatment. Through differing cultural lenses, a child Network, “The term complex trauma describes both or family’s perceptions of a trauma experience is children’s exposure to multiple traumatic events, often quite different from that of a social worker, often of an invasive, interpersonal nature, and the therapist or counselor. Cultural differences can also wide-ranging, long-term impact of this exposure. exist in beliefs about if, when, and how to resolve These events are severe and pervasive, such as traumatic stress symptoms, and about help-seeking abuse or profound neglect. They usually begin early and utilization of supportive resources outside in life and can disrupt many aspects of the child’s their community. Significant cultural variations development and the formation of a self.” 51 exist in a child or family’s expression of distress. Pain, fear, worry or hyperarousal are sometimes Grandfamily caregivers are typically a vital expressed somatically. Traumatic stress reactions protective factor for these children who have can be extremely subdued, can appear to be over- experienced parental separation and trauma.52 magnified, or can even mimic psychotic reactions. These caregivers help reduce trauma and mitigate Often, family and cultural factors combine to define its impact on children. They provide stability, what is considered an appropriate reaction to illness supportive relationships and an extended family or trauma. Some families and cultural groups are network, all of which align with research-based less comfortable responding to personal questions protective factors that promote resiliency and about emotional distress. They may think that being healing.53 distressed means that there is something mentally wrong. One of the most important things Indeed, many children who are separated from their a provider can do is to reframe the parents experience trauma and other mental health question “What’s wrong with you?” issues. According to Generations United’s 2017 to “What happened to you?” State of Grandfamilies report, In Loving Arms: The Protective Role of Grandparents and Other Relatives in Raising Children Exposed to Trauma, children in Interventions to Help Kinship Families foster care are at least five times more likely to have anxiety, depression and/or behavioral problems than Deal with Parental Separation/Trauma 49 children not in foster care. Moreover, one in four Kinship provider agencies and community alumni of foster care experiences Post-Traumatic stakeholders can use some of the same strategies Stress Disorder (PTSD) and more than half that behavioral health providers adopt to reduce experience at least one mental health issue such as the trauma of child-parent separation. The National 50 depression, social phobia and/or panic syndrome. Child Traumatic Stress Network has suggested some tips for providers to build supportive relationships Similar data do not exist for children who 54 were separated from their parents and live in a to address trauma for African American youth: grandfamily that is not involved with the foster care • Get to know the community you serve . system. However, the trauma of parental separation Providers should familiarize themselves with the is typically very similar. social and historical context, issues and daily
18 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture stressors facing the communities where their Virtual visitation is easy, involves no or minimal cost kinship families live, especially if they do not or travel time and can create bonds in challenging reside in the same communities. situations. As the term implies, virtual visitation is • Prioritize engagement and earning trust as a form of child visitation that requires the use of essential components of treatment . Non- technology to keep in contact with a child. “Virtual African American providers should understand visitation,” also known as “Internet visitation” or that African American youth and families may “electronic visitation,” is still relatively new but approach services with healthy and often growing in popularity as video calling becomes the well-justified skepticism given their history of norm. It may include e-mail, video conferencing, possible broken promises. Building trust will video mail, and instant messaging, and can be take time. detailed as part of a case plan or child custody • Focus on what youth have been through rather order. Through technology, kinship caregivers can than “what’s wrong” with them . Traumatized be helped to facilitate a variety of ways for children urban African American children and youth may in their care to stay connected with their parents, often be viewed by schools and other systems regardless of where they live. in a negative way. Services should be seen as Most child welfare agencies and courts allow virtual supports to them rather than as something visitation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to trying to “fix” them. One of the most important the pandemic, several states, including Texas, Utah, things a provider can do is to reframe the Florida, and Wisconsin, enacted laws specifically question “What’s wrong with you?” to “What allowing courts to order online or electronic happened to you?” visitation in custody matters. • Normalize trauma reactions and provide practical tools for coping with them . Kinship Virtual visitation can help keep a parent and child families and their youth often experience connected, though it should not be a permanent ongoing stressors. Providing realistic and substitute for in-person parenting and support. In concrete ways to manage such stress early in the case of parents whose contact with their child your client-family relationship will facilitate the is safe and/or court allowed, it can help nurture development of a therapeutic alliance and trust. the bond between a parent and child and ease • Support, create and build upon existing the child’s sense of abandonment. In non-COVID positive connections . To overcome living in a times, provider agencies can serve as the conduit toxic environment or circumstances, building and site for this connection. It is important that supportive relationships is essential to creating parents’ willingness and responsibility to participate a roadmap to recovery that youth architect for in such virtual visitation be assessed by the agency themselves. to mitigate against “no shows,” which would be another disappointment for the child. Virtual Visitation Virtual visitation benefits can be realized in such As our society continues toward mobility and simple parent-child interactions as the following: connectivity, the changing concept of parental • Reading a bedtime story visitation moves with it. Job relocations, • Helping with homework or a special project remarriages, incarceration, tough economic times • Sharing childhood accomplishments, such as and more have increased the possibility of parents awards or even losing teeth losing contact with their children. The COVID-19 • Talking about day-to-day happenings pandemic presents safety concerns to in-person visitation and the necessity and value of virtual Technology can also keep parents and children visitation is elevated. connected by allowing parents to watch their
CHAPTER 3 19 children’s sporting events, piano recitals, and other important occasions live as they are happening.
The following site has secure video calling so that parents and children may have the chance to communicate visually, in addition to speaking, over long distances: www.internetvisitation.org.
Engaging Kinship Caregivers: Managing Risk Factors in Kinship Care is a five-part video training series by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, led by Dr. Joseph Crumbley. The training sessions strengthen the skills of child welfare professionals in supporting families to improve outcomes for children. The series includes a discussion guide to help program directors, supervisors and trainers lead group sessions. The videos and guide can be downloaded at www.aecf.org/blog/engaging-kinship-caregivers-with-joseph-crumbley
Entangled Roots: The Role of Race in Policies that Separate Families by Elisa Minoff at the Center for the Study of Social Policy. https://cssp.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/CSSP-Entangled-Roots.pdf
Kinship Care When Parents are Incarcerated: What We Know, What We Can Do by Creasie Finney Hairston for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, is a review of research and recommendations for action. https://www.prisonlegalnews.org/media/publications/annie_e_casey_foundation_kinship_ care_when_parents_are_incarcerated_report_2009.pdf
Race and Class in the Child Welfare System by Dorothy Roberts at the Public Broadcasting Service, analyzes ways in which race affects child protective service caseworkers’ decisions to remove children from their parents’ homes. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/fostercare/caseworker/roberts.html RESOURCES Relatives Raising Children: An Overview of Kinship Care edited by Joseph Crumbley and Robert L. Little gives information to professionals, agencies, and communities to provide services to kinship families. Although the book is a few decades old, it is still relevant. It examines clinical issues, suggests intervention strategies, examines legal and policy implications and makes recommendations. http://drcrumbley.net/books-2
20 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Chapter 4
Benefits and Strengths of Preserving and Restoring Cultural Identity
The more you know of your history, the more liberated you are .
Maya Angelou, African American poet, singer, memoirist, and civil rights activist; raised by her paternal grandmother
Introduction » Call and Response which is part of worship in what is commonly referred to as the African American culture in the United States refers “amen corner.” to the cultural contributions rooted in the historical » Playing the Dozens signifying “trash talk” experience of African American people. Cultural where people go back and forth to one-up identity forms during primary socialization and each other. formative years where a child learns how to view • Music (e.g., rap, soul music, jazz, hip-hop) the world through their caregivers, surrounding • Clothing styles family, extended family members, and close • Language and communication styles friends. There is power in identity and truth about • Greetings (e.g., fist bump) African American’s rich heritage of tribulations and • Hairstyles (e.g., natural, the fade, perming of triumphs. It is important to create a landscape that hair to straighten it) speaks truthfully about where African Americans are, where we come from and where we can go. Benefits of Preserving Cultural Identity Such a discussion helps us relate to one another better and have greater self-awareness about our The benefits of helping a child preserve their cultural and individual identities. cultural identity include mental health resiliency, higher levels of social well-being, and improved An African American family’s social and cultural coping skills.56 Cultural identity is a significant part interactions reinforce their identity as evidenced by of who each child is and sets the stage for how they some significant elements:55 acquire core values, socio-dynamic practices and • Food choices (e.g., soul food) rituals. Such identification also determines how a • Holiday celebrations (e.g., Kwanzaa) child interacts with others. Several studies show that 57 • Age milestone celebrations (e.g., Rites of having a strong, positive cultural identity leads to: Passage ceremonies) • Greater self-esteem • Oral tradition • Higher education levels » Spoken Word that uses the same • Better psychological adjustment techniques as African American preachers • Improved coping abilities including movement, rhythm, and audience • Decreased levels of loneliness and depression participation. • Higher levels of social well-being
CHAPTER 4 21 Perils of Being African American Today Kinship service providers and kinship caregivers who are not themselves African American and are The long history of racism and resulting segregation raising African American children must learn about has caused some negative responses that imperil the impact of racism and be active participants in African Americans in their daily living. In addition supporting each child’s strong cultural identity.58 to the long history of discrimination in education, employment, and access to resources, African The following are a few ideas to help agencies and Americans have had to deal with harassment from kinship caregivers: formal government agencies and racist citizens • Learn about uniquely African American cultural by the mere fact of their skin tone. Two notable rituals, activities, and preferences. examples of African Americans being unfairly • Recognize the racial disparities within your own targeted are the following: community. • The stop-question-and-frisk program or stop- • Recognize the racist behaviors that may and-frisk is a practice of temporarily detaining, happen to family members merely because of questioning, and at times searching civilians their dark skin and empathize with them. and suspects on the street for weapons and • Provide or consult resources for kinship other contraband. It has overwhelmingly caregivers to learn about the child’s heritage. targeted African Americans. • Include the value of cultural identity during court and case planning for the child. • Documented response of undue force by police • Ask children and youth about their cultural against African Americans, especially males. identity, or if there are any cultural practices or The Black Lives Matter movement grew out of the norms that are important to them. disproportionate targeting of African Americans. • Ask children and youth about cultural issues Black Lives Matter is an international activist many times throughout their time in kinship movement, originating in the African American care as answers can change. community, that campaigns against violence and • Collaborate with kinships caregivers to host systemic racism towards black people. African American rituals and events. • Sponsor African American cultural tours locally Kinship caregivers need to educate the children and nationally. and youth in their care about safety measures and • Organize a trip to the new National Museum appropriate and safe responses to law enforcement. of African American History and Culture in Provider agencies can also help counsel African Washington, D.C. American children and youth in this regard. Key African American Cultural Rituals and Recommendations for Helping Children Resources that Help Maintain Identity Maintain Their Cultural Identity To help African American children and youth Unfortunately, when a child can no longer be raised maintain and strengthen their identity, there are by parents and goes to live with relatives, there can events and resources that can help: be an interruption in the child’s cultural identity • Family Reunions are important rituals that development. For example, this interruption is promote the endurance of African American common for children of mixed races, who present as extended families and help maintain cultural African American and are placed with members of traditions and celebrate the past, present, and the extended family who are not African American. future. The elders are often seen as the keepers It is important that kin caregivers, agencies and of the African American legacy. organizations help these children remain connected • Juneteenth is an important yearly with their African American culture, as well as the commemoration on June 19th of the ending of other cultures in the children’s lives. slavery in the United States.
22 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture • Kwanzaa is an annual celebration of African attending college. Since blacks were not American culture held from December 26 to welcome in the other established Greek January 1, culminating in gift-giving and focus Letter Societies, they created their own to on daily positive principles of living. For some provide mutual support, celebration of culture, African Americans, it replaces the Christmas community service, and networking. gift-giving. • African American Sororities and Fraternities Other African American membership clubs also were created in the early 1900s to provide celebrate African American culture such as the Elks, brotherhood and sisterhood for blacks Masons, Eastern Stars, Boule and more.
No, no, my friend . You are kind, and you mean well, but you can never understand these things as I do . You’ve never been oppressed .
S . Alice Callahan, Wynema: A Child of the Forest, Native American author
Kinship Family: He is an Extension of Me is a video that is part of the Authentic Voices Video Series. It the story of Donaniece, an African American grandmother, who decides to become her grandson’s legal guardian at the age of 50. She shares the practical and financial challenges she faces and how she is teaching her grandson the meaning of family. www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vltF6tTmbM
Preserving Our History: Black Documentary Experience is a special documentary that was produced from a compilation of six documentaries in commemoration of 2019 Black History Month. www.youtube.com/watch?v=dHku4lAIGE8
Race and Culture: Tools, Techniques and Trainings: A Manual for Professionals by Sumita Dutta and Reenee Singh is a practical resource for trainers who wish to work with the issues raised by racial and cultural diversity in their own agency settings. This book is intended as an easy guide and a “hands-on” tool for practitioners, academics, and students. Abstract available at https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2010-23823-000
Strength and Resilience in African American Families is a presentation by Dr. Stephanie Coard, an Associate Professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Studies
at the University of North Carolina/Greensboro and a leader in the field of resilience. She RESOURCES has several publications that examine how to leverage family and community strengths to support the well-being of children. Most recently, she chaired the American Psychological Association’s Task Force on Resilience and Strength in Black Children and Adolescents. She uses her work to urge for a re-framing from risk-focused approaches to resilience-focused approaches to fully support the health and well-being of African American youth. www.youtube.com/watch?v=FeVNVTQYwss
CHAPTER 4 23 Chapter 5
Strategies for Providing Culturally Appropriate Services
I have learned over the years that when one’s mind is made up, this diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear .
Rosa Parks, Civil Right Activist
Introduction Communication with African American Kinship Families The African American community is very ethnically, socioeconomically, and culturally The Susan G. Komen’s website features a guide to diverse. One size does not fit all but represents Applying Culturally-Responsive Communication many. However, understanding some generalized in Black and African American Communities that cultural norms will be important to improve focuses on cultural norms and strategies for services and communication with African communication for breast cancer patients.59 It American kinship families. offers rich guidance for providers to engage African American kinship families.
Cultural Norm Description Agency Strategies for Communication
COMMUNITY Extended family is an African • Include extended family members in outreach and AND FAMILY American cultural norm education events. Their inclusion may facilitate where grandparents, aunts, decision-making around kinship care roles and uncles, cousins, godparents, support needs. and close friends are thought of as part of the family. Grandparents hold a special status in the family unit.60
24 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Cultural Norm Description Agency Strategies for Communication
FAITH AND Faith, church, and strong • Find out about the caregiver’s religion or faith and RELIGION religious affiliations are how it helps them relieve stress. often central to family and community life in Black and • Consider using local clergy to support your African American culture, engagement message either through their religious especially among the bulletins or as part of a kinship care presentation to older population. the community.
RESPECT Generally, Black and African • Respect your audience by using formal rather than AND TRUST American families place informal words when addressing or speaking to a strong emphasis on people and groups. showing respect to elders, • Do not use professional jargon or acronyms but but they are not necessarily speak simply and sincerely. patriarchal.61 • Educate yourself about the demographics of your intended caregiver or audience including their educational and literacy levels. This will demonstrate that you cared enough to understand their circumstances.
• Be patient and recognize gaining respect may take time.
PERSONAL AND Many Blacks and African • Share your own background, life stories and COMMUNITY Americans prefer personal pictures, especially if you were raised by a RELATIONSHIPS relationships over formal grandparent. This will help you connect. ones and may take a personal interest in others. • Learn about the community and its priorities. • Do not assume you are the only person providing this service. Ask about who may already be doing similar work and how you can connect to that group or add additional support.
• Find out who you can partner with within the community to engage and support kinship families.
COMPETING African American kinship • Engage caregivers in shared decision-making PRIORITIES families often face complex where they determine, with input from you, what social and daily living their priorities are. Do not act as their boss! situations and may prioritize what is an immediate need versus a longer-term need.
CHAPTER 5 25 Strategies for Culturally Competent » Manage the dynamics of differences and Organizations and Agencies cultural interactions » Acquire and institutionalize cultural The National Center for Cultural Competence knowledge, and suggests the following strategies for organizations » Adapt service delivery to diversity and the and government agencies to become more cultural contexts of communities that are culturally competent:62 served • Incorporate these capacities into all aspects • Have a defined set of values and principles, and of policymaking, administration, practice, and demonstrate behaviors, attitudes, policies, and service delivery, and systematically involve structures that enable effective work cross- consumers, families, and communities. culturally. • Have the capacity to: The implementation of these principles requires » Value diversity each organization and government agency to create » Conduct cultural self-assessments infrastructure policies and protocols as described in periodically the table below.
For Organizations and Government Agencies
Goals – What Implementation Methods – How
PARTNERSHIPS, CULTURE & POLICIES
Promote a culture of learning about • Provide reading materials for staff about the history and African American children and families. struggles of African American families, past and present.
• Hire diversity consultants as culture-specific healers or cultural brokers, who have in-depth knowledge of the African American kinship community.
Form collaborative partnerships with • Conduct a needs assessment to identify who is serving government agencies and community African American kinship families in both formal and and faith-based organizations serving informal settings. kinship families. • Conduct a gap analysis to avoid duplication of services.
• Review consumer ratings of organizations for culturally appropriate and accessible services to determine if they are suitable partners.
Initiate an assessment of your existing • Perform periodic kinship satisfaction focus groups or practices and service gaps relative to listening circles using peer advocates not associated with African American kinship families. your agency or organization to maximize candor and honesty.
• Create forums and other opportunities for ongoing staff dialogue to reflect on what is and what is not working when serving families.
26 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Goals – What Implementation Methods – How
Create and implement systems • Develop policy on culturally appropriate services that should of accountability for cultural be included in the personnel manual. competence standards. • Ensure consequences are provided for staff violating personnel policies on culturally appropriate services.
Engage in advocacy activities that • Identify, hire, and train African American kinship peers to include and incorporate the voices and provide ongoing feedback concerning engagement policies, recommendations of kinship families direct services, literature handout language, etc. for policy development. • Assess kinship caregivers’ knowledge of current environmental trends and events that impact their families (e.g., Black Lives Matter, social media, drugs, community violence, HIV) to assist them in developing strategies and parenting skills to address such.
GENERAL DELIVERY PRACTICES
Follow culturally sensitive • Establish a presence in community locations and events that engagement and outreach practices, African American kinship caregivers frequent. such as participation in local community events. • Participate in community fairs to promote culturally sensitive services.
• Set-up a feedback box for people to provide anonymous feedback on kinship services.
Allow for walk-in appointments. • Set-up flexible scheduling that recognizes the challenges of caregivers to attend appointments.
• Create a Hotline for kinship caregivers to receive immediate help.
• Plan and allow for extended family members at appointments and other events.
Be mindful that home visits • Work with caregivers to find mutually agreeable home visit are not always desirable by the dates and times. caregivers because of privacy issues, embarrassment about their living • Consider alternative meeting places when a home visit is quarters, etc. not required.
Follow a culturally sensitive • Use a peer kinship advocate to reach out to kinship communication style that emphasizes caregivers by phone. the African American community’s • Send post cards regularly for appointment reminders or preference for personalized, in-person event notifications. (rather than written mail and e-mail) communication.63
CHAPTER 5 27 Goals – What Implementation Methods – How
Use culturally relevant screening • Pilot-test any new assessment tools to determine their and assessment tools that are at the appropriateness with savvy kinship caregivers. appropriate literacy level and have th grade and been validated with members of the • Create documents that have a reading level of 6 below; Microsoft Office can assess the reading level of your local kinship community. documents under the “tools” tab.64
Identify the best engagement • Do not call the kinship caregiver by their first name when you practices for greeting, addressing, and first meet them. acknowledging caregivers. • Ask them how they would like to be addressed (e.g., Ms. Mrs., Mr., Dr., or other title).
Provide mechanisms for transportation • Consider providing free transportation vouchers or cards to appointments at the agency based on an incentive system for family participation in or organization as well as other agency or organization services. community supports. • Connect families with other kinship caregivers for carpooling.
STAFFING PRACTICES
Recruit, mentor, and recognize staff • New hire staff interviews should have questions regarding that demonstrate special cultural cultural sensitivity about African American kinship families. awareness as assessed by kinship caregivers. • Hire staff from the community to help with engagement and outreach.
• At annual meetings, recognize staff that has had success with kinship families.
• Identify, recruit, hire, and train kinship family members as part of the staff serving families.
Provide ongoing workforce • Require mandatory yearly training hours on the status and development and cultural competence conditions of African American kinship families in your staff trainings. community.
• Have staff do self-assessments of cultural competence practices through self-ratings.
28 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Goals – What Implementation Methods – How
PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT & RESOURCE SET-UP
Create a familiar, welcoming physical • Wall hangings, posters, etc. should depict African American environment by depicting African families of all types (e.g., kinship caregivers, married couples, American families in workspaces, single parents). promotional materials, resources, and artwork. • Have African American magazines in the reception area. • Provide literature in the reception area that provides free information on community resources and opportunities beyond direct kinship services.
• Post a large calendar of events that promotes activities that would be meaningful and helpful to kinship families.
• Provide free coupons in the waiting area for community resources (e.g., food, clothing, etc.).
Arrange reception and meeting • Set aside a place for children to have toys, games, areas to accommodate large, books, magazines. extended families. • Ensure that the skin color of children depicted in print and any toy dolls reflect the community.
Photo by CHAPTER 5 29 Lauren Souther. MRS. VICTORIA GRAY, ARIZONA GRAND VOICE
Victoria Gray, now age 69, has many years of experience raising her grandchildren and as a licensed foster parent. She and her husband have cared for 41 children as foster parents and have been raising their seven grandchildren since 2007. Mrs. Gray’s husband, Gentry Gray, now age 84, retired from his first career at the post office in December 1999. Their first two grandkids came a few years earlier in February 1993 and August 1993. DNA proved that the second child was not their grandchild and the Grays became licensed foster parents to keep the siblings together. Five more grandchildren joined their grandfamily in December 2007, due to their adult daughter’s incarceration and history of substance use.
In their new caregiver role, the Grays were unable to get the grandparent stipend from the Arizona Department of Child Safety, which was $75 a month per child. This meager stipend would have helped to make ends meet, but the Gray’s income was too high. “We went back to work,” Victoria Gray said. “We needed to keep the budget together.” Mrs. Gray said her grocery bill more than doubled once she took in her five youngest grandchildren. “I thought ok, I can feed them this week. But what do I do about next week? We were already dipping into our savings, we took a chunk out of our 401K,” she said.
After the Grays became licensed foster parents in 1993, they adopted their grandchildren. As licensed foster parents, they were able to get almost nine times more in monthly state aid than unlicensed kinship caregivers. But there are thousands of other kinship caregivers in Arizona who do not have the option to become licensed foster parents or decide not to pursue licensure and financially struggle while meeting the needs of the children in their care.
While the focus is often on the children, kinship care can take a toll on grandparents and other caregivers, especially as they get older. Older caregivers are more likely to have physical challenges. Mrs. Gray had a knee replacement a few years into her new caregiving role. This limited how much she could play with her grandchildren. “I’m not jumping rope with the girls,” she said. “Not unless a paramedic is waiting on the curb with oxygen.”
Most recently, the Gray family founded the nonprofit GreyNickel, Inc., which aids kinship GRANDFAMILY PROFILE caregivers during the critical first days after a child is placed in their home. Through the nonprofit, Mrs. Gray conducts home visits with new kinship families immediately after a child comes into their care. Victoria Gray concedes the foster care licensing process can be “invasive,” with background checks and fingerprint requirements. Plus, many families think they’ll only be providing care for a short time, so it’s not worth the hassle. That’s when Mrs. Gray tells kinship families that she’ll see them in a few months, when the reality of the situation sets in, reinforced by the lack of financial support.
Working with families as grandparent to grandparent and bringing that experience of what they are going through is powerful. As Mrs. Gray notes, “when meeting with African American grandfamilies and adding the understanding of culture, it helps the reality of the situation. Hearing and seeing someone that looks like them gives them relief and hope that they can survive. Trust is built almost immediately.”
30 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture In addition to leading her own nonprofit organization, Mrs. Gray is a key member of the GRAND Voices national network of grandfamily caregiver advocates, which Generations United manages and runs with support from Casey Family Programs and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Among her many engagements through that network, Mrs. Gray has been a pivotal voice at national leadership meetings exploring GRANDFAMILY PROFILE the creation of a 21st century child welfare system. She also serves as a steering committee member with the Arizona Grandparent Ambassadors (AZGA). As a member of AZGA, Mrs. Gray was instrumental in the passage of a 2016 Arizona bill that overturned the “grandmother penalty,” which had prevented countless kinship families from qualifying for Arizona’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program.
Due to her tremendous personal caregiving and advocacy work, Mrs. Gray has been recognized with numerous well-deserved awards. In 2017, she received the Brookdale Foundation Grandfamilies Award from Generations United to honor her work on behalf of kinship families. In 2019, she received a special commendation from the first lady of Arizona for her work helping kinship families, and the following year was honored with the Casey Family Programs Excellence for Children, Kinship Caregiver Award. You can listen to Mrs. Gray’s story in her own words at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcoecmX7Gxk
When meeting with African American grandfamilies and adding the understanding of culture, it helps the reality of the situation . Hearing and seeing someone that looks like them gives them relief and hope that they can survive . Trust is built almost immediately .
Mrs . Victoria Gray, Arizona Grand Voice
Photo courtesy of Victoria Gray.
CHAPTER 5 31 Grandfamilies Strengths: Children Thrive
Safety Permanency Behavioral Mental Health Health
Cultural Brothers Identity and Sisters
Belonging Stability
Children in 7.9 million All Grandfamilies Number of children who live with a relative who is the head of the household
2.7 million Number of children who are being raised by a relative or close family friend and do not have a parent living in the household
139,004 Number of children in foster care being raised by relatives African American Children Disproportionately Live in Grandfamilies
Children in the U.S. who are African American 14%
Children in grandfamilies who are African American 25%
Children in foster care who are African American 23%
Heightened Challenges for African American Children in Grandfamilies
Child Poverty Juvenile Justice About 48% of children who live with African American youth with behavioral or a grandmother only are poor, and other challenges are 4.6 times more likely approximately 42% of these children than white youth to end up in juvenile are African American justice facilities
African American Parents More Impacted By Several Factors Causing Grandfamilies to Form
Poverty Incarceration COVID-19 Substance Use
African Americans are African Americans are African Americans African American twice as likely to live in incarcerated at more have higher rates of parents impacted by poverty as whites than five times the rate infection and death from substance use are of whites COVID-19 than whites less likely to be able to access treatment and services in their communities
All the data points in these infographics are cited in the introduction or chapter 2 of this report. Communicating with your African American Patient, part of University of Washington Medical Center Culture Clues™. http://depts.washington.edu/pfes/cultureclues.html
Multicultural Counseling Self Efficacy Scale - Racial Diversity Form is a 60-item self-report instrument that assesses the perceived ability to perform various counselor behaviors in individual counseling with a racially diverse client population. For additional information, see https://www.meta.org/papers/multicultural-counseling-self-efficacy-scale-racia/22574664
A Practice Guide for Working with African American Families in the Child Welfare System: The Role of the Caseworker in Identifying, Developing and Supporting Strengths in African American Families Involved in Child Protective Services by Maxie Rockymore, MSW for the Minnesota Department of Human Services, Child Safety & Permanency Division. This guideserves to help child protective services caseworkers identify and support strengths of African American families on their caseloads as a means of effective engagement and family intervention. https://edocs.dhs.state.mn.us/lfserver/Public/DHS-4702-ENG RESOURCES
TIP 59: Improving Cultural Competence/ SAMHSA Publications and Digital Products is a guide that helps professional care providers and administrators understand the role of culture in the delivery of mental health and substance use services. It describes cultural competence and discusses racial, ethnic, and cultural considerations. https://store.samhsa.gov/product/ TIP-59-Improving-Cultural-Competence/SMA15-4849
34 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Chapter 6
Helpful Services
I have discovered in life that there are ways of getting almost anywhere you want to go, if you really want to go .
Langston Hughes, African American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist
Introduction Kinship Navigator Programs
The services listed below are ones that African Kinship navigator programs assist kinship caregivers American grandfamilies are likely to need at one in learning about, finding, and using programs and point or another. The information is intended to help services to meet the needs of the children they are give direction to understand and access needed raising and their own needs. They also promote services. It is not a comprehensive list, but rather effective partnerships among public and private gives basic information on nationally available agencies to ensure African American grandfamilies programs that are important for grandfamilies. are served. Starting roughly twenty years ago, The services section begins with general information some jurisdictions implemented kinship navigator about kinship navigator programs, as they are programs, which were shown to be successful in critical to navigating the many systems that connecting the families to the services and support impact grandfamilies. Services are next organized they need. However, not enough jurisdictions had alphabetically into the following categories: these programs. Since 2018, federal funds have been available to all states, tribes and territories I . Child Welfare II . Education interested in these programs, and ongoing federal III . Financial Assistance and Income Supports reimbursement is possible for evidence-based IV . Health and Nutrition Supports kinship navigator programs, thanks to the Family V . Housing First Prevention Services Act, discussed in chapter 7. VI . Legal and Crime Victim Assistance For more information, visit: VII . Supportive Services www.grandfamilies.org/Resources/Kinship- The services below do not exist universally, but it is Navigator-Programs always worth checking every possibility when needs arise.
CHAPTER 6 35 National and State Child Welfare Organizations I. Child Welfare and Agencies: Each state operates a child welfare Black Administrators in Child Welfare (BACW): As agency, which are known by an array of names. They a nonprofit membership and advocacy organization, work to prevent child abuse and neglect, oversee the mission of BACW is to advocate for culturally foster care, and support permanent placements for appropriate services for African American children children in foster care. and families in the child welfare system and to For a link to each state’s child welfare agency promote the development and support of African website, and national organizations and other child American leaders in the field. BACW membership welfare resources, visit: www.childwelfare.gov/ is available to administrators, mental health and organizations/ juvenile justice professionals who provide services to children and families, and to individuals and A Second Chance Inc . (ASCI): ASCI is a nonprofit students interested in child advocacy. corporation whose mission is to provide a safe, secure, and nurturing environment to children in For more information or to become a member, visit: kinship care within the child welfare system. ASCI http://blackadministrators.org/ is the largest provider of kinship support services Child Welfare League of America (CWLA): CWLA to all of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, where it is is a nonprofit membership organization that leads headquartered. It also provides kinship services in and engages its network of public and private child several other counties in Pennsylvania. welfare agencies and partners to advance policies, For more information, visit: https://www. best practices and collaborative strategies that asecondchance-kinship.com/ result in better outcomes for children, youth and families who are vulnerable. II. Education For more information or to become a member, visit: https://www.cwla.org/ Child Care and Early Childhood Programs: The Office of Child Care in the U.S. Department of Health The Children’s Bureau: The Children’s Bureau, within and Human Services administers the Child Care and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Development Fund (CCDF). CCDF helps low-income Administration for Children and Families, provides families obtain childcare so they can work or attend matching funds to states, tribes, and communities training/education. to help them operate every aspect of their child welfare systems - from the prevention of child For a list of childcare agencies, visit: www.acf.hhs. abuse and neglect to the support of permanent gov/programs/ccb/ placements through adoption and subsidized guardianship. Head Start: Head Start/Early Head Start is a federal program that promotes school readiness of children For more information and to subscribe to the ages birth to 5 from low-income families. Children’s Bureau free newsletters, visit: https:// www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/programs/state-tribal-funding To find an Early Head Start or Head Start, visit: http://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/hslc/HeadStartOffices National Association of Black Social Workers (NACSW): The NACSW, comprised of people of Center for Parent Information & Resources: A hub African ancestry, is committed to enhancing the of information and products created for the network quality of life and empowering people of African of Parent Centers serving families of children with ancestry through advocacy, human services delivery, disabilities. Early intervention and special education and research. services are available to all children in the United States age birth to 18. If a grandfamily caregiver For more information or to become a member, visit: would like to access a parent center, they should https://www.nabsw.org/
36 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture not be discouraged by their name. “Parent” includes other adult family members. III. Financial Assistance and Income Supports To find a local parent center: https://www. parentcenterhub.org/find-your-center/ Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP): LIHEAP is a federal program designed Educational Scholarships for Youth In Foster and/ to assist households with low incomes meet their or Kinship Care – Sample Listing: immediate home energy needs. • Adopted/Foster Child/Orphan Scholarships www.scholarships.com/.../adopted-foster-child- For more information, visit: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ orphan ocs/resource/liheap-fact-sheet-0 • College Scholarships and Support for Higher Social Security: Children may be eligible for Social Education https://www.childwelfare.gov/topics/ Security if their parent is collecting retirement or outofhome/independent/support/education/ disability insurance benefits. If one of the child’s • Great Scholarships for Adopted Students parents has died and was fully insured when he https://www.top10onlinecolleges.org/ or she died, children may be eligible for survivor’s scholarships-for/adopted-students/ benefits. Kinship providers can apply for benefits • Private Scholarships for Foster Youth – Foster on behalf of the child based on the work record of Care Newsletter. http://foster-care-newsletter. the child’s parent. Grandchildren may also qualify com/private-scholarships-for-foster-youth/ based on their grandparents’ (but not other kinship • Scholarships for Foster Kids www. caregivers’) work record. collegescholarships.org/scholarships/foster.htm For more information, visit: https://www.ssa.gov/ State Education Offices: Contact information for people/parents/ each state’s education agency and special education agency. Supplemental Security Income (SSI): SSI provides cash benefits to eligible adults and children with For local information, visit: https://www2.ed.gov/ disabilities that seriously limit their activities. about/contacts/state/index.html To see if a caregiver or specific child may qualify, Scholarships for African American Students/ visit the disability planner on the Social Security Fastweb: The scholarships in this directory are Administration website: www.ssa.gov/planners/ typically awarded through schools from notable disability/ African American advancement organizations, such as the NAACP, sororities, fraternities, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF): foundations. The first of four purposes of the TANF program is to provide assistance to needy families so that For more information, visit: https://www.fastweb. children can be cared for in their own homes com/directory/scholarships-for-African American- or in the homes of relatives. TANF is critical to students supporting grandfamilies through both family and child-only grants. These monthly grants are often United Negro College Fund (UNCF): UNCF is the only source of ongoing financial assistance for the nation’s largest private scholarship provider grandfamily caregivers to help meet the needs of to minority group members. Each year, they children they did not plan or expect to raise. award more than $100 million in scholarships to students attending more than 1,100 schools across For more information, visit: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/ the country, including the prestigious network of ofa/programs/tanf/about historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).
For more information, visit: https://uncf.org/ scholarships
CHAPTER 6 37 A fact sheet containing contact information for application, visit www.fns.usda.gov/snap/ TANF in each state, which may be known by a applicant_recipients/apply.htm different name depending on the state: www.gu.org/ • The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program resources/grand-resources-tanf/ for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) is a public health nutrition program providing An extensive policy brief by Generations United nutrition education, nutritious foods, explores the importance of the TANF program to breastfeeding support, and healthcare referrals grandfamilies and how states, tribes and localities for income-eligible women who are pregnant can make this vital program more accessible: www. or post-partum, infants, and children up to age gu.org/app/uploads/2018/05/Grandfamilies-Report- five. For more information, visit www.fns.usda. TANF-Assistance-Policy-Brief.pdf gov/wic/wic-eligibility-requirements or www. nwica.org/wic-basics#row-states IV. Health and Nutrition Supports The Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program: The Maternal, Infant, and Early Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services: Health Childhood Home Visiting Program gives pregnant insurance coverage is available to eligible children women and families, particularly those considered being raised by grandparents and other relatives. at-risk, necessary resources and skills to raise children. For additional information, visit: https://www. insurekidsnow.gov/ For more information visit: https://mchb.hrsa.gov/ maternal-child-health-initiatives/home-visiting- Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services overview Center for Mental Health Services (SAMHSA): The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services U .S . Department of Health and Human Services, Administration (SAMHSA) collects information Office of Minority Health: The U.S. Department on thousands of state-licensed providers who of Health and Human Services, Office of Minority specialize in treating substance use disorders, Health improves the health of racial and ethnic addiction, and mental illness. minority populations through the development of health policies and programs. For additional information, visit: https:// findtreatment.gov/ For more information, visit: https://minorityhealth. hhs.gov/ Nutrition Supports: • The National School Breakfast and Lunch Programs provide free or low-cost meals to V. Housing eligible students. The child’s schoolteacher or principal should have an application. Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) Local AAAs may • The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) have funds available through the Older Americans provides low-income children with nutritious Act for older grandfamily caregivers to help with meals when school is not in session. Free home modifications and repairs. meals are provided to all children 18 years old To find an AAA, visit: https://eldercare.acl.gov/ and under at approved SFSP sites. visit www. Public/Index.aspx whyhunger.org/findfood to locate sites using an online map. Generations United: Grandfamilies have many • The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance housing needs and challenges. Responses include Program (SNAP) formerly known as “Food almost twenty specially designed housing programs Stamps” provides vital nutrition support. To find for grandfamilies with services on-site. Generations local offices, the state hotline, and each state’s United has been working for twenty years on
38 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture grandfamilies’ housing needs and they focused their For a contact list of state administrators, visit: 2019 State of Grandfamilies Report on these issues. www.acf.hhs.gov/fysb/resource/fvpsa-state- administrators-list-2020 For information about grandfamilies’ housing needs and responses, including the specially designed Justia: General legal questions can be posted free housing programs, visit: www.gu.org/resources/a- on this website for attorneys to answer. Visit the place-to-call-home-building-affordable-housing-for- Justia site to post a question. grandfamilies/ and http://grandfamilies.org/Topics/ Housing For more information, visit: https://www.justia.com
Section 504 Home Repair Program This program, Law Clinics: Some law schools operate clinics that also known as the Single Family Housing Repair serve grandfamilies. Contact local law schools for Loans and Grants program, is managed through the more information. U.S. Department of Agriculture. It provides loans to Legal Aid: Grandfamily caregivers may be able to very-low-income homeowners to repair, improve or receive free legal advice by contacting the Legal Aid modernize their homes or grants to age 62+ very- organization in their city or state. low-income homeowners to remove health and safety hazards. For more information, visit: https://www.lsc.gov/ For more information, visit: https://www.rd.usda. what-legal-aid/find-legal-aid gov/programs-services/single-family-housing- National Disability Rights Network (NDRN): NDRN repair-loans-grants is the nonprofit membership organization for the U .S . Department of Housing and Urban federally mandated Protection and Advocacy (P&A) Development: There are a number of housing Systems and Client Assistance Programs (CAP). programs that may help grandfamilies with There is a P&A/CAP agency in every state and U.S. subsidized housing, including “Section 8” housing territory as well as one serving the Native American vouchers and Family Unification Vouchers. population in the four corners region. Collectively, the P&A/CAP network is the largest provider of To learn about programs in each state, visit: https:// legally based advocacy services to people with www.hud.gov/states disabilities in the United States.
VI. Legal and Crime Victim Assistance For more information, visit: www.ndrn.org State Locator: www.ndrn.org/en/ndrn-member- Crime Victim Services: Crime Victim Services is a agencies.html resource from the Office for Victims of Crime in the U.S. Department of Justice. Its directory helps crime State Bar Associations: Every state has a bar victims and service providers find nonemergency association, which is an organization that can crime victim service agencies in the United States provide information about attorneys and legal and abroad. resources in the state. Some attorneys provide free services (called pro bono services) for nonprofit For the directory, visit: https://ovc.ncjrs.gov/ organizations or people who cannot afford typical findvictimservices/ legal fees. Family Violence Prevention Services: Services The American Bar Association website lists state bar provided can include helping victims of domestic associations: https://www.americanbar.org/groups/ violence find safe shelter, community outreach and legal_services/flh-home/flh-bar-directories-and- education, crisis counseling, victim advocacy, legal lawyer-finders/ aid, transportation, and support groups.
CHAPTER 6 39 of support groups and services for Relatives As VII. Supportive Services Parents (RAPP) since the 1990s.
The Brookdale Foundation Group, Relatives For more information, visit: As Parents Program (RAPP): The Brookdale www.brookdalefoundation.net/RAPP/rapp.html Foundation Group has had a national network
NEW YORK CITY’S GRANDPARENT RESOURCE CENTER
As part of the Brookdale Foundation Group’s RAPP network, the New York City (NYC) Department for the Aging’s Grandparent Resource Center (GRC) has for decades been providing supportive services to grandfamily caregivers who are raising grandchildren and other young relatives within the five boroughs of NYC. The GRC offers advocacy and case assistance, as well as making referrals to appropriate community-based organizations. In order to best serve the neediest of kinship caregiver families, the GRC expanded in 2014 to be a part of the Mayor’s Action Plan for Neighborhood Safety (MAP) to build stronger neighborhoods within designated New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) developments. Through this initiative, grandfamily caregivers receive kinship education, trainings, and peer support on how to raise children again in today’s urban society.
Among the services provided are two grandparent support groups, both consisting primarily of African American kinship caregivers, which meet in NYCHA housing developments. One is in the Queensbridge Houses, the largest public housing development in the country. The other is in Ingersoll Houses, where approximately 25 African American caregivers get together for bi-weekly support group meetings. These caregivers discuss a variety of things, such as health issues that historically plague African Americans (e.g., hypertension, diabetes, heart disease), and also discuss solutions such as exercise and a good nutrition plan for their families. The caregivers even started a grandparent cookbook with their favorite African American dishes, along with having a “potluck” luncheon where the caregivers all brought their favorite dishes. As food is a big part of African American culture, it is important to find time to instill good healthy cooking principles, but not lose the distinctiveness of African American cuisine. PROGRAM PROFILE The support group facilitator is an African American male, Mr. Frank McCrea, with a master’s degree in public administration. He knows firsthand the experiences that the participants’ children may experience growing up. During the support group sessions, he stresses the importance of teaching children good communication techniques for some of the situations they may experience in their lifetimes. He often brings in specialists (such as the Civil Complaint Review Board) who explain ways African American children can respond to authorities. Mr. McCrea strives “to teach the caregivers how to show their children the importance of assimilating into society, as unfair sometimes as it may be, without losing their sense of African American identity.”
40 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Cooperative Extension Services: Extension offices Services can include: in land-grant universities provide many services to • information to caregivers about available their communities. While most people associate services Cooperative Extension with 4-H, it also supports • assistance to caregivers in gaining access to the childcare, budgeting, nutrition, gardening, food services storage, and youth and grandfamily support. • individual counseling, organization of support groups, and caregiver training to assist the For more information, visit: caregivers in the areas of health, nutrition, and https://impact.extension.org financial literacy and in making decisions and Faith-Based Organizations: Fundamental supports solving problems relating to their caregiving in African American communities are provided roles by faith-based organizations, churches, and other • respite care to enable caregivers to be houses of worship. temporarily relieved from their caregiving responsibilities To locate black protestant churches, visit: https:// • supplemental services, on a limited basis, to theblackchurches.org complement the care provided by caregivers
For an AARP toolkit for African Americans/Faith- These categories are written in law to be flexible Based Initiatives, visit: https://www.aarp.org/ and respond to the needs of the caregivers in the content/dam/aarp/home-and-family/voices/black- area being served. The fifth category, supplemental community/faith-based-initiative-tool-kit-2017-aarp. services, is particularly broad and has been used for legal assistance and direct payments. pdf For more information visit: https://acl.gov/ Hogg Foundation - African American Faith-Based programs/support-caregivers/national-family- Education and Awareness: This initiative educates caregiver-support-program African American faith communities about mental health, wellness, and recovery, and builds on the National Urban League (NUL): The NUL is an unique strengths of churches and other faith-based American service agency that was founded to organizations to identify and connect congregants eliminate racial segregation and discrimination and with local behavioral resources for treatment and to help African Americans and other minorities support. An additional goal is to support faith participate in all phases of American life. As an leaders in addressing their own mental wellness. historic civil rights and urban advocacy organization with 90 affiliates serving 300 communities, it For more information, visit: https://hogg.utexas.edu/ provides direct services nationwide. initiatives/African American-faith-based-education- and-awareness For more information, visit: https://nul.org
National Family Caregiver Support Program: The OIC of America-Helping People Help Themselves: Administration for Community Living (ACL) within The mission of OIC is to provide quality education the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and training services through a national network funds state aging departments to provide five of local affiliates that enable economically categories of supportive services to grandparents disadvantaged and unemployed people of all races and other relatives age 55+ who are raising children, and backgrounds. in addition to other family caregivers. These services For more information, visit: www.oicofamerica.org are provided through Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) or nonprofit organizations with whom they Respite: Whether it is Lifespan Respite or another contract. program, the National Respite Locator Service
CHAPTER 6 41 can help locate local services. Many of these www.gu.org – Generations United’s website respite programs are aimed at providing respite to containing resources and publications on caregivers of older individuals, but many also serve grandfamilies, including Generations United’s annual grandfamilies. State of Grandfamilies reports.
To find a local program, visit:https://archrespite.org/ Conclusion respitelocator Programs and services for African American Additional Website Resources grandfamilies are available in many service systems, yet these programs and services often do not tailor www.grandfamilies.org – A comprehensive one-stop their outreach and support to them. Grandfamilies national website for publications, materials, and laws may read “parents” and think that certain supports impacting grandfamilies both inside and outside the do not include them. For these reasons, kinship foster care system. navigators are critical. They help African American grandfamilies “navigate” these many systems. www.grandfactsheets.org – Fact sheets for each Local knowledge is invaluable and sometimes that state and the District of Columbia containing knowledge has to be combined with advocacy in specific state information related to grandfamilies, order to access available services. This chapter will including a comprehensive list of resources and hopefully help grandfamilies, and the people who services, including kinship navigator programs. serve them, find support.
Photo courtesy of Bridge Meadows.
42 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Chapter 7
Federal Child Welfare Laws That Prioritize and Support Relative Connections
The question is not whether we can afford to invest in every child; it is whether we can afford not to .
Marian Wright Edelman, African American activist for children’s rights
Introduction overrepresentation of African American children in foster care, these laws make important strides There are several federal child welfare laws that in keeping African American children with their specifically impact grandfamilies of all races and families. This chapter highlights a few of these laws. ethnicities, including African Americans. They Other federal laws and programs impacting families encourage the placement of children with relatives are addressed in chapter 6. and strive to support them through programs such as kinship navigators and guardianship assistance. Indian Child Welfare Act
By encouraging children to be placed with kin, The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) was enacted in these laws support important cultural connections 1978 in response to the troubling practices of public and other positive outcomes for children. Given the and private child welfare agencies. At that time,
1978: 1996: 2008: 2014: 2018: Indian Child Preference Fostering Preventing Sex Family First
Welfare Act for relative Connections Trafficking & Prevention TIMELINE (ICWA) placement for to Success Strengthening Services Act all kids and Increasing Families Act Adoptions Act
CHAPTER 7 43 unnecessary removal of large numbers of American • Gives states, tribes and territories the option Indian and Alaska Native children from their homes to use funds through Federal Title IV-E of was commonplace. This frequently resulted in the the Social Security Act (Title IV-E) to finance placement of these children in non-family, non- guardianship assistance programs (GAP) that Indian homes far from their tribal communities. enable children in the care of grandparents ICWA is considered the gold standard of child and other relatives to exit foster care into welfare law and puts great emphasis on keeping permanent homes. GAP gives children a children connected with their culture. The parallel permanency option when reunification with toolkit for American Indian and Alaska Native their parents and adoption are not possible. grandfamilies contains extensive information about It is an option that responds to cultural this important law. considerations and possible changes in family dynamics that may not be appropriate or ICWA laid the groundwork for the importance desirable for some kinship families. As of March of placing children with their families and tribes. 2020, 40 states, the District of Columbia, 14 About twenty years later, the value of these family tribes or tribal consortia, and Puerto Rico and connections was explicitly extended to all children in the Virgin Islands have been approved by the federal law. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Children’s Bureau to implement GAP. Personal Responsibility and Work • Requires child welfare agencies to make Opportunity Reconciliation Act reasonable efforts to place siblings together, This federal law, enacted in 1996, requires that whether in foster care, kinship guardianship or states, as a prerequisite for receiving funding for adoptive placements. Siblings who are placed in child welfare services, “consider giving preference to the same home as a child eligible for Title IV-E an adult relative over a non-related caregiver when guardianship payments may also receive GAP determining placement for a child, provided that support even if they are not otherwise eligible. the relative caregiver meets all relevant state child • Gives child welfare agencies the option to grant protection standards.”65 All states currently mandate variances or waive non-safety related foster either through law or policy and practice that child family home licensing standards for relatives. welfare agencies give preference to fit and willing Preventing Sex Trafficking and relative caregivers. Strengthening Families Act
Fostering Connections to Success and This 2014 Act makes a number of reforms to child Increasing Adoptions Act welfare law, including calling for the implementation of a “reasonable and prudent parent” standard In October 2008, The Fostering Connections to that allows caregivers to make daily decisions for Success and Increasing Adoptions Act of 2008 children in their care, so children in foster care can (Fostering Connections Act) unanimously became have typical growing-up experiences. Thoughtful federal law. It further acknowledges the important and culturally appropriate implementation of this role grandparents and other relatives play in the standard helps African American children remain lives of children. better connected to their communities by allowing Among the many aspects of child welfare that them to take part in cultural activities, sleep overs, the law affects, there are several key provisions and the like without getting the approval of the impacting grandfamilies: child welfare agency. • Requires that child welfare agencies identify This law also builds on the Fostering Connections and notify adult relatives when children enter Act, by containing an important provision allowing foster care. “successor guardians” to be named in the GAP
44 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture agreement. If named, the successor is able to step Children and families can receive these services into the guardian’s shoes upon their death and more than once if the child is again identified as a continue to receive the monthly assistance for the candidate for foster care. care of the child. Unlike the original guardian, the The prevention services and programs include: successor does not have to be related to the child or be a licensed foster parent. Until this reform, a child • Mental health treatment who was receiving Title IV-E guardianship assistance • Substance use prevention and treatment would lose eligibility and revert to the foster care • In-home parent skill-based supports system when their guardian died or was otherwise To qualify for reimbursement, the services unable to care for them. and programs must be found by a new “Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse” to Family First Prevention Services Act meet promising, supported or well-supported evidence-based standards. To see which services The Family First Prevention Services Act (Family and programs are currently eligible to receive First) became federal law in February 2018. Family reimbursement, see https://preventionservices. First is a landmark child welfare law that aligns abtsites.com/. with the principle that children do best in families. For the first time, Family First allows federal child Kinship navigator programs: States, tribes, welfare funding to be used to prevent children and territories can receive ongoing federal from entering foster care by providing evidence- reimbursement for up to 50 percent of their based services and programs to parents, children, expenditures to provide kinship navigator programs, and kinship caregivers. The law also provides for which link caregivers to services and supports for ongoing federal reimbursement for evidence-based themselves and the children they raise. To obtain kinship navigator programs that link caregivers and reimbursement, certain federal criteria must be met, children to services and support. including that the program must meet evidence- based requirements as determined by the Title The following provisions mention kinship caregivers IV-E Clearinghouse. No kinship navigator program specifically and are designed to better support has currently been found by the Clearinghouse them, as well as the children they are raising: to meet these standards. Once included in the Clearinghouse, that program and other jurisdictions Prevention services and programs: Federal child following its model, will be able to access this welfare dollars may now be used for up to 12 months ongoing federal support. This support is considered of evidence-based services and programs to prevent an entitlement, and is not limited by a dollar children from entering foster care by supporting cap. Furthermore, this support will be available the triad of generations in grandfamilies - children, regardless of whether the children for whom the kinship caregivers, and parents. The children can services are being accessed meet certain income get services if they are “candidates” for foster care eligibility requirements for Title IV-E foster care who are at imminent risk of entering care and can funding. See Chapter 6 for more information about safely remain at home with parents or with kinship these important programs. caregivers. These services extend to children whose adoption or guardianship is at risk of disruption or Licensing standards for relative foster family home: dissolution. Building on the 2008 Fostering Connections Law, which allows jurisdictions to grant variances or Kinship caregivers or parents of the children can waive non-safety licensing standards for relatives, also get services if they are needed to prevent the this law seeks to break down licensing barriers so children’s entry into care. that relatives may become fully licensed foster
CHAPTER 7 45 parents. If fully licensed, the children in their An important component of the appropriate use of relatives’ care can receive ongoing foster care QRTPs is the need to maintain family connections. maintenance payments, as all children in non- To be considered such a program, the program must relative foster care receive. Pursuant to this law, facilitate outreach to the child’s family members, HHS identified National Model Foster Family Home including siblings and close family friends, and the Licensing Standards and “relied heavily” on Model child’s family must be a part of the child’s treatment, Family Foster Home Standards developed by including family-based support for at least six NARA, Generations United and the American Bar months post-discharge. As part of the assessment to determine if a QRTP placement is necessary, Association. The jurisdictions have reported back to the placement preferences of the family must be HHS with comparisons of their licensing standards considered, and children must be placed with their with the National Model and have identified and siblings unless it is not in their best interest. If addressed inconsistencies, in addition to reporting the placement preferences of the family are not back on their use of federal waiver authority. followed, the reasons must be documented as part Family connections for children in group care: of that assessment process. If children need to go into the legal custody of Other Provisions: This law also reauthorizes the the child welfare system, the law encourages Adoption Incentives Program; allows states the the placement of children in foster care in option to receive federal support for foster youth the least restrictive, most family-like settings up to age 21; promotes educational stability for appropriate to their needs by not allowing the use children and youth in foster care, guardianship of federal funds for inappropriate group placements. and adoption; requires health care coordination Federal funds may only be used for a few specific for children and youth in foster care; and extends types of group placements, including qualified federal support for training of professionals and residential treatment programs (QRTPs). caregivers working with children in the child welfare system.
RESOURCES ON THE INDIAN CHILD WELFARE ACT
• ICWA Online Training – The National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) provides an online training course that provides basic information on the requirements of ICWA and tips on how to implement the requirements in practice. The ICWA Online Training is designed for social workers, attorneys, family members, and students. The training uses non-legal language to make the training more accessible and is designed so participants can go at their own pace. Simulated case examples are used to provide real-life examples of how ICWA may be applied. You can find more information about the training at https://www.nicwa.org/online-icwa-course/.
• NICWA also offers other types of training, such as Cross Cultural Skills in Indian Child RESOURCES Welfare and Positive Indian Parenting. You can find a description of many of these trainings at https://www.nicwa.org/training-institutes/ and how to request or participate in a training.
• NICWA Publications — NICWA’s website at www.nicwa.org contains publications geared toward child welfare and family members. Examples of publications are (1) How to Find Free and Low Cost Legal Services, (2) The Indian Child Welfare Act: A Family’s Guide, (3) Frequently Asked Questions, (4) List of Designated Tribal ICWA Agents (contacts for tribal
46 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture child welfare programs), (5) A Family’s Guide to the Child Welfare System, and (6) Tracing Native Ancestry: A Guide to Responding to Inquiries. NICWA publications also include policy and practice issues in child welfare.
RESOURCES ON THE FOSTERING CONNECTIONS ACT
• Detailed Summary of the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoption Act AND Short Summary of the Fostering Connections to Success and Increasing Adoption Act, in addition to other resources. www.grandfamilies.org/Resources/Federal-Laws/ Fostering-Connections
RESOURCES ON THE STRENGTHENING FAMILIES ACT
• Implementing the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act to Benefit Children and Youth, in addition to other resources. www.grandfamilies.org/Resources/ Federal-Laws/Strengthening-Families
RESOURCES ON THE FAMILY FIRST ACT
• The Family First Messaging Toolkit by the Annie E. Casey Foundation is designed to help child welfare leaders and advocates talk about how the Family First Act can improve outcomes for children and families. The toolkit offers talking points on the benefits of the law and tips for media interviews. https://familyfirstact.org/resources/communication-toolkit
• Implementing the Family First Prevention Services Act — Technical Guide by the Children’s Defense Fund in partnership with the American Academy of Pediatrics, ChildFocus, FosterClub, Generations United, Juvenile Law Center, and NICWA is a question-and-answer- style resource containing commonly asked questions about the many important provisions in the law. www.childrensdefense.org/policy/policy-priorities/child-welfare/family-first/ implementing-the-family-first-prevention-services-act/
• New Opportunities for Kinship Families: Action Steps to Implement the Family First Prevention Services Act in our Community & Leveraging the Family First Prevention Services Act to Improve Use of Title IV-E GAP are two publications addressing the Family First Act, developed by the ABA Center on Children and the Law, Children’s Defense Fund, and Generations United, with support from Casey Family Programs. www.grandfamilies.org/ Publications
• Model Family Foster Home Licensing Standards – Resources concerning the licensing of relatives as foster parents, including links to the NARA and National Model Family Foster Home Licensing Standards. www.grandfamilies.org/Resources/Foster-Care-Licensing RESOURCES • Title IV-E Prevention Services Clearinghouse contains a list of prevention services and programs and kinship navigator programs that has been reviewed for inclusion, along with its rating of promising, supported, well-supported or currently does not meet criteria for evidence-based standards. https://preventionservices.abtsites.com/
• Additional resources on the Family First Act available at www.grandfamilies.org/Resources/ Federal-Laws/Family-First
CHAPTER 7 47 Chapter 8
Advocacy
Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time . We are the ones we’ve been waiting for . We are the change that we seek .
President Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States; raised by maternal grandparents
Introduction Movement (1946-1968) involving a diversity of approaches including lawsuits, public information/ Advocacy means supporting a cause or issue to education campaigns, lobbying of the federal bring about change and help others. You are an government, and mass direct action. These advocate when you support a cause or speak in strategies resulted in substantial local and national favor of an issue. Anyone can be an advocate. changes and policies that have improved equal You do not have to be an expert. Your personal rights for African Americans. A current example of experience is invaluable. It may be your experience such advocacy is the Black Lives Matter movement as a member of kinship family and/or your to end racial profiling and violence upon the African experience as a professional serving kinship families. American community from the criminal justice and The challenge is how to get your issues heard. other systems. For advocacy to be effective, it is important to In advocacy efforts to support grandfamilies, it learn how to identify issues of concern and issues makes sense to apply the principles of these past that can prevent your advocacy efforts from being and current advocacy movements along with successful. Change is more likely to occur if needs best practices of researched advocacy models. are expressed in a clear way to the people or Indeed, the past and present change movements organizations that make decisions. Later, after issues emphasize to African American grandfamilies that of concern have been identified and communicated, positive government and community change can be you will need to engage in a process to identify potential solutions. promoted through their own hands.
Efforts to improve the quality of life for African The why, what, who, where, when, and Americans are as old as the United States, from how of advocacy: abolitionists seeking to end slavery to now. In advocacy, it is important to know: Advocacy and activism within, about, and for the African American community has a rich cultural • Why your voice matters history. Most notable is the American Civil Rights • What you want to achieve or change
48 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture • Who you need to educate or ask for support an environment for educating the members of • Where to get helpful information and resources your community about the needs of grandfamilies. to make your case Once people are aware of the challenges and want • When and how to advocate to address them, they can work together to make reform. Why does your voice matter? • Your experiences are valuable and can be Key audiences: used to improve things! No one knows as • Advocates determine who needs to become much about your lived and/or professional aware experience. • People who can bring change are leaders • You know when something is or is not working. • Leaders can be informal, formal, appointed, or If you do not tell people who have the authority inherited to make decisions about a situation that you • Specific key leaders who may need to become are unhappy with, they will assume everything aware include: is all right or possibly make changes that do » Media not address your concerns or may make things » Federal lawmakers worse. » State and local legislators • You have ideas on how to make things better! » Judges/court systems By speaking out, you may find that you are not » Federal, state, and local government alone. agencies and their leaders - e.g., aging What do you want to achieve or change? services, child welfare, education, health care, housing, and income support Advocacy is aimed at bringing change. Advocacy » Community-based organizations and challenges service systems and the broader leaders community to respond genuinely to meet the needs » Faith-based organizations and leaders of people. » Universities and others in the research community Advocacy and promoting the needs of your » Foundations and other funding sources community can: » Additional influencers- consider • Open doors to participation who are other major voices in your • Right the wrongs of the past and present community? Law enforcement? The • Change the balance of power business community? • Address injustice In order to communicate your message to key • Improve services audiences, your first step must be to build trusted 66 • Alter attitudes and values relationships with that audience. When the audience Question: What do I/we want to achieve/change for is new, how do you go about building those African American grandfamilies? relationships?
Who do you want to educate or ask for How to enter the African American community support? for information and to provide assistance: In order to work effectively in the African American Who to educate is determined by first discovering community, an advocate must first understand how how aware the public in your community is about and if that particular neighborhood is organized grandfamilies. Right now, there are probably only to support grandfamilies. All African American a few people in your community who know the communities are not organized the same way. challenges that grandfamilies face and how to do Each neighborhood often has its own network of something about it. Public awareness is creating relationships and hierarchy of leaders that they tap
CHAPTER 8 49 into for support. Often, these are informal networks Making a Pitch and Responding to Reporters: or leaders who are not housed in a physical location • When you make a pitch for a story, do it by or building with a sign, label or a title. It may just be email and then follow up with a phone call. the block captain, the local community organizer Include why the story is timely and relevant. Try or other non-agency influential person. There to make a connection to other current events – are often unspoken leaders and groups whom e.g., the opioid epidemic, the COVID-19 crisis. many neighborhood members listen and turn to • When a reporter calls you, interview them: for advice, guidance, and sanction for proposed » Find out their purpose and deadline advocacy interventions. It is essential for an » Ask to take 30 minutes to gather advocate to understand the social organization of information and call them back the targeted groups in order to identify the bridge » Get the correct spelling of their name, leaders for connections. As in the Civil Rights phone number, and media organization Movement, the focal point for social, economic, they represent and political African American organization and » Call the reporter back—honor advocacy is often centered around the church your commitment or other religious institution. Consequently, it is important for advocates to identify, connect, and » Try to have all information on hand run advocacy ideas through the recognized African » Ensure you follow-up as promised American community leaders and institutions. Being a Resource to the Media:
Building relationships: • Introduce yourself to target media • Develop a sense of the kind of stories that • Work your existing connections to be interest your contacts introduced to new audiences. • Make yourself readily available and follow-up • Present yourself as a resource to that new promptly audience. • Be dependable • Be responsive and helpful. If you do not have • Share helpful resources what you need on hand, never guess or invent. • Contact the reporter and/or submit a letter Those actions will lose your credibility. It is to the editor to correct stereotypes or much better to follow-up later with the correct misinformation piece of information. • Affirm the positive and emphasize points of How Social Media Can Elevate your Profile for commonality. Traditional Media: • Confront and manage conflicting opinions. • Most reporters are now required to be on social • Use honey, rather than vinegar, in conveying media for work your points. • You can use social media, especially platforms • Manage unresponsive relationships through like Twitter and LinkedIn, to highlight the work persistence and strategic approaches, which you are doing and connect with other people can include leveraging media attention. • You can find reporters’ Twitter profiles linked Media: The most important audience for any in many articles and retweet, like, or tweet at advocacy work is undoubtedly the media. Public them. policy reform takes getting broad attention from the • Often reporters and editors will have the direct communities most affected and stories that stir messages open to everyone or their emails in policymakers and decisionmakers. their bios to easily connect with them Media relations can be described as interactions Once positive media stories are in your community, with editors, reporters, and journalists, and is a advocacy for policy or programmatic reform is strategy that many organizations and people use to much easier. The key audiences will be aware and advance their cause. open to hearing your advocacy.
50 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Federal, State and Local Policymakers: Like important community event where many caregivers working with the media, many of the same will be present and can share their stories. principles apply to federal, state, and local Policymakers love these stories and rely heavily on policymakers. These leaders and their staff are often them when advocating for reform. on tight deadlines, and one of the most effective things you can do is be seen as a helpful resource to Your governor, large city mayor, relevant federal and them. Be readily available and follow-up promptly. state child welfare, aging, education, health, housing, Many federal and state staff to policymakers have and income support leaders operate in much “go to” local program leaders, caregivers, and the same way as federal policymakers. However, families whom they rely on for direct, practical other state and local policymakers, including state feedback. Become one of those experts. They need legislators and mayors, city and county council to hear from the people who live these experiences members representing smaller cities and rural areas, and work directly with African American often have few, if any, staff. Do not let that stop you grandfamilies. You do not need to ask policymakers from approaching these policymakers in a way that for specific public policy or program changes, rather is comfortable to you. you can let them know what works and does not Contact information for many federal, state, and work in the communities they represent. local leaders can be found in the resource section of When approaching a U.S. Representative or this chapter. Senator’s office, remember that they each have local offices nearer to where you live or work. You Where do you go to get helpful do not have to directly approach the Washington, information and resources to make D.C. office if you do not want to, as staff in the your case? local offices will share your stories, strengths, and Knowing where to get information to share with key challenges with their “boss.” You can reach out to the local or DC office in the way you feel most audiences to make advocacy points is critical. We comfortable – phone call, email or in-person. If you hope this toolkit and its resources provide you with set up a meeting, do not feel short changed if the those sources of information. Remember that you Member of Congress does not meet directly with are an expert either as a professional serving the you as they rely heavily on their staff. Be prepared families and/or as a member of a kinship family. for your meeting with short talking points you want One of the most important resources is to address and leave them with a way to contact lived experience. If you do not have that you, along with any written information you wish to experience yourself, you have ready access to it. share. Do not hesitate to reach out to the Member Grandfamilies themselves are vitally important to of Congress’ “scheduler” to invite the Member to an making reform. Knowing specific law or putting forth detailed policy change is not as important as understanding the community’s needs, Photo courtesy of Children’s Defense Fund. strengths, and ideas of what will help. Sharing personal stories from grandfamilies will move the dial of reform.
CHAPTER 8 51 SHARING YOUR PERSONAL STORY
While this chapter of the toolkit also generally applies to grandfamily-members who act as advocates, the following is exclusively tailored to grandfamily-members who share their own personal lived experiences as part of their powerful advocacy.
Sharing your life experience and your strengths and challenges is the single most effective way to make change. Policymakers want to hear directly from you, the grandfamily members. Your stories are the ones they repeat to the media and other policymakers when trying to achieve reform. So, how do you do this effectively and safely?
When sharing your story to make public policy or program reform, you must do it strategically. “Strategic Sharing” is a concept on which Casey Family Programs has written and trained. It essentially means making strategic choices about how to tell your life stories so that your voices can be heard, your message is effective, and your well-being is protected. Although focused on those who have had involvement with the child welfare system, the principles of “strategic sharing” are equally applicable to those children and families outside the system.
As a family member who is about to engage in advocacy work, you should first consider a few questions and then develop rough talking points about what you want to cover:
• What is the purpose of sharing your personal story?
• What do you want the audience to take away?
• Which parts of your story do you not want to share? Protect yourself from what may harm you emotionally.
This last point is very important. You do not have to share everything. Prepare yourself for how to answer questions that you do not want to answer. The most difficult kind of public speaking is the kind you are about to embark on. Sharing your story takes courage, strength, SHARING YOUR STORY and preparation. Remember your objective - “I am doing this because I want to help others like me.”
All advocates—whether a grandfamily-caregiver, an adult raised by a grandfamily-caregiver, a youth in a grandfamily-member’s care or a birth parent – should consider that your story is also the story of other members of your family. Be mindful of how much you share about other family members and, if possible, ask their permission and feedback on what you plan to share.
For caregivers and parents speaking about children, remember that the information you may be sharing about the children you are raising could follow them. If developmentally appropriate, discuss it with them beforehand to make sure it is alright with them.
52 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture In very general terms, when sharing your story, you will want to discuss:
• The very basics of why you are raising your grandchildren or other kin children; why you were raised in relative care; and/or why you were not able to raise your own children SHARING YOUR STORY • How the situation impacted you and your family
• Challenges you have faced
• Services or programs that helped
• Services or programs that would have helped
• How the family is doing now
You do not need to ask for specific public policy or program changes, rather you should let your audience know what would have helped so they can develop solutions with your input. You are not expected to be a public policy expert, you are an expert in your family. That expertise is truly yours and yours alone. It is invaluable.
SOCIAL MEDIA, STORYTELLING, AND LIVED EXPERIENCE
A specific way to engage African American youth is through social media. Social media is a useful tool in youth engagement in advocacy for grandfamilies. While there are unique considerations regarding youth privacy—not to mention trying to keep pace with new platforms—grandfamily advocates can harness the instant nature of communicating through social media to keep youth and families informed and engaged.
While not synonymous with social marketing, encouraging youth social media can help with social marketing efforts. Further, having youth develop their own video content or tweets about their stories and lived experience in grandfamilies can lessen the stigma associated ENGAGING YOUTH with relative placements. Ownership of storytelling also signals that youth are not merely tokens in advocacy but truly valued to signal what is needed in their own care. This emphasis on valuing lived experience is essential to connecting with youth.
The type of social media platforms you use and how they are used should reflect community values and be accessible to the greatest number of youth and families. Pay attention to agency policies regarding the use of social media for youth in out of home care and be willing to accommodate different types of users and platforms. Social media is powerful and persuasive so be careful about how you message. Do not be afraid to ask questions about the strategies being used in social media to advance your advocacy.
CHAPTER 8 53 When and how do you advocate? • Carry the vision for a better future • Identify mutual values: Advocates start by asking a few important » Develop an outline of the issues you are questions: seeking to change—create the vision • What are the barriers and benefits to your » Add key supporters audience thinking, feeling or acting on your » Identify and network with community issue? resources (programs, people, funders, etc.) • What changes in attitude and behavior do you » Define the challenges of grandfamilies and want to motivate in your audience to meet your how to decrease them goal? • Determine objectives: • Based on what you know about what your » Plan audience needs to hear to think, feel or act, » Identify what success is and evaluate what are the three most compelling sentences results you could use to motivate the audience? (These » Refocus on new goals when ready are your messages or talking points.) • Count on change: An advocate has vision to see beyond the problem » Be flexible—it will take time and can give this vision away to others so they can » Take care of self eventually take ownership and responsibility for » Work to build longevity pursuing change. Creating a feeling of ownership » Regroup as needed with allies will make or break a grassroots advocacy » Praise allies who help and celebrate effort. success • Follow-through: Successful advocates must: » Leave a legacy for others to learn from • Respect the community and its traditions » Recognize the efforts of all • Respect African American history and culture » Know that there will be new advocates and • Know the struggle of grandfamilies and new challenges translate that for others » Acknowledge that grassroots advocacy • Not blame, shame, or negatively criticize the is from the people - let the people decide community how to use what was learned • Be able to enlist the help of others By considering and implementing the five Successful advocates should: advocacy steps in this chapter, and effectively and • Create an atmosphere of mutual learning thoughtfully leveraging the powerful stories of • Have patience grandfamilies themselves, you will make change. It • Be good listeners may take time, but it will eventually happen.
54 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Boulder Advocacy, a program of the Alliance for Justice. This organization provides nonprofits with the knowledge they need to become confident advocates. They offer webinars, trainings, resources and one-on-one technical assistance to nonprofit organizations. https://bolderadvocacy.org/ or 1-866-NP-LOBBY.
Examples of Child Welfare and Aging Advocacy Toolkits:
• North American Council on Adoptable Children. Adoption Assistance Advocacy Toolkit This resource outlines a plan of action to advocate for adoption subsidies. It provides guidelines for talking to legislators in person, over the phone, and through the mail as well as holding events and building coalitions. The toolkit is divided into sections on Responding to a Proposed Cut and Planning for the Future so advocacy efforts can be short- and long-term. It includes factual talking points, as well as emotional testimonies from families that show the personal impact of receiving help. https://www.nacac.org/ wp-content/uploads/2017/04/advocacytoolkit.pdf
• Kentucky Youth Advocates. Family First Act Communications and Advocacy Toolkit This toolkit provides an overview of the Family First Act, describes how it will affect each specific community, and provides tips for communicating its purpose and impact to others. Specific sections show how to tailor messaging to different audiences such as legislators and child welfare agencies and how to highlight Family First’s connections to the opioid crisis and kinship care. It has sample social media posts and hashtags that can be customized for different stakeholders to use. https://kyyouth.org/family-first/
• Foster Coalition. Be a Foster Care Social Advocate While this is not a full advocacy toolkit, it is a detailed list of ready-to-use social media posts that advocates can share. Most posts include links to other resources with statistics and testimonies. http://www.fostercoalition.com/be-a-social-advocate-for- foster-care
• National Council on Aging. Advocacy Toolkit: Recess 2020 One of NCOA’s many toolkits, this resource provides guidance on effectively contacting legislators during House and Senate recesses. It includes a list of 5 ways to connect with lawmakers with links to guides on hosting site visits or attending town halls. The toolkit outlines talking points on key pieces of legislation and a sample thank you letter to send after a visit. https://www.ncoa.org/public-policy-action/advocacy-toolkit/toolkits-by- topic/advocacy-toolkit-recess-2020/
Find your Governor. The National Governors Association has contact information for each governor. www.nga.org/governors/addresses/ RESOURCES
Find your Mayor. The U.S. Conference on Mayors has contact information for many mayors around the country. www.usmayors.org/mayors/
Find your State Legislator. The Library of Congress has a clickable map with links to each state legislature’s website. On those sites, you should be able to locate contact information for your legislator. www.congress.gov/state-legislature-websites
CHAPTER 8 55 Find your U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators. To find a U.S. Representative who represents where you live or the location of the program where you work, type your zip code into the box on this website www.house.gov/representatives/find-your- representative. It will give you the contact information you need. The same information is available for the two Senators representing your state at www.senate.gov/general/contact_ information/senators_cfm.cfm
Generations United’s GRAND Voices network. This national network of kinship caregiver “That’s why I’m so eager to use advocates raise their voices in support of all the GRAND Voices platform . grandfamilies around the country. The network I want to tell other African is supported by Casey Family Programs American caregivers don’t be and the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The W.K. ashamed to ask for the help that Kellogg Foundation invested funds specifically they need, or fear losing their to elevate and strengthen the voices of grandchildren to the system African American and American Indian and because they are struggling ”. Alaska Native Grandfamilies as part of the network. Generations United is working on this Ms . Christine Benslimen, initiative in partnership with the National Indian Pennsylvania GRAND Voice Child Welfare Association (NICWA) and A Second Chance, Inc. (ASCI). GRAND Voices has 70 current members in 44 states, the District of Columbia and 11 tribes. To see the members, visit www.gu.org/explore-our-topics/grandfamilies/grand-network/.
Hands-on Social Marketing: A Step-by-Step Guide by Nedra Kline Weinreich, Sage Publications. https://sk.sagepub.com/books/hands-on-social-marketing-2e
National Association of the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a nonprofit membership organization with more than a half-million members and supporters. They advocate for civil rights, leading grassroots campaigns for equal opportunity and conducting voter mobilization. The NAACP has many advocacy resources available at https://www.naacp.org/federal-advocacy-resources/, including two-page political activity guides for churches and nonprofits and a “tools book” for federal advocacy. https://live- naacp-site.pantheonsite.io/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Tools-book.pdf
National Association of Blacks In Criminal Justice (NABCJ) is a nonprofit membership organization that is dedicated to improving the administration of criminal justice, with a goal of achieving equal justice for blacks and other minorities, see www.nabcj.org. The NABCJ also offers prestigious scholarships to high school seniors, see https://nabcj.org/
thurgood-marshall-scholarship. RESOURCES
Promoting Health in Multicultural Populations: A Handbook for Practitioners by Robert M. Huff and Michael V. Kline, Sage Publications. https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/health- promotion-in-multicultural-populations/book237727
Strategic Sharing guide by Casey Family programs and Foster Care Alumni of America. http://www.hunter.cuny.edu/socwork/nrcfcpp/info_services/download/StrategicSharing.pdf
56 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Recommendations
The recommendations in this section are intended the practices and policies that could contribute as suggestions for reforms that will support African to the racial disparities. American grandfamilies. • Create and implement an interagency, community-wide plan with the help of the The recommendations fall into three categories: African American community to address racial • Practices that agencies and organizations can disparities and their causes as identified in the implement immediately assessment . • Policies and practices that African American • Provide training and tools for staff to identify grandfamilies and advocates who work and address their own implicit and explicit with them can encourage policymakers to racial biases . Work with African Americans to implement provide this training and tools. • Data collection recommendations for agencies • Use proven tools to provide training and advocates and direction to child welfare workers Some of these recommendations may not so they can better serve African fit the needs of your community. Always let American grandfamilies . When child your own community needs, as informed welfare caseworkers make referrals to other by the grandfamilies themselves, guide any providers, they should ensure the providers effective advocacy and reform work. have a full understanding of the client’s cultural background, especially how culture Generations United and its national partners will affects beliefs about health, parenting, and also pursue these recommendations as they aim behavior. The providers should be able to use to support a broad array of African American strategies found to be effective with African grandfamilies throughout the country. American grandfamilies like those developed by Dr. Joseph Crumbley and noted in chapter 3. Practice Recommendations for Child • Expand access and availability of child Welfare and Other Service Providers: welfare services within African American • Authentically engage African communities . Research shows that many American kinship caregivers, birth African American birth parents do not have parents, and young people in the design access to services and supports in their and implementation of services that impact communities.67 To help expand the access them. This includes hiring and training them to and availability of services within a particular provide services and supports to peers. community, agencies can determine how they • Ensure that services are based in cultural can increase availability and usage, such as beliefs, teachings, customs, and traditions and offering different locations, collaborating with are aligned with trauma-informed care for all community and faith-based organizations, African American family members in the kinship expanding service hours, and addressing triad of parent, caregiver, and child. obstacles to attendance such as child care and • Conduct an interagency, community-wide transportation. assessment using data as recommended • Develop lists of culturally competent below to identify racial disparities in serving African American therapists, counselors, all families, including grandfamilies . As part and other service providers so agencies and of the assessment, consult with the African organizations can readily refer families to peer American community to consider and address providers.
RECOMMENDATIONS 57 • Use the Usborne Scale to measure children’s providing tailored training to grandfamilies; sense of cultural identity 68. This tool can be using federal authority to grant variances and used by child welfare agencies and other waive non-safety related licensing standards for organizations serving the children in African relatives; and providing needed items such as American grandfamilies. In one study, former beds or fire extinguishers. foster youth averaged a score 4.5 points • Use inclusive language and images in outreach lower than non-former foster youth. The Scale materials . Do not limit materials to “parents” explores the relationship between cultural when other caregivers are included too. Use identity and both self-esteem and well- images of African American grandfamilies in being, which are consistently mediated by self- the materials and reach out through concept clarity. trusted community-based and faith-based • Implement fully the reasonable and prudent organizations. parent standard established by Policy and Practice Recommendations for the Preventing Sex Trafficking and Strengthening Families Act of 2014 and raise Advocates: cultural identity as part of that standard during • Hold the child welfare agency accountable court and case planning. to implement the practice recommendations • Organize support groups for caregivers in above . African American communities and ensure • Work to ensure that the Title IV-E that they are led by peers who have first-hand Prevention Services Clearinghouse includes experience with the caregivers’ strengths and a kinship navigator model that serves challenges. all grandfamilies regardless of child welfare • Establish robust kinship navigator programs involvement. that link African American caregivers and the • Advocate that evaluations for children they raise whether inside or outside the prevention services, post-permanency foster care system with much-needed culturally supports, and kinship navigator programs appropriate services. Federal funding now consider African American culture and needs . exists for these kinship navigator programs, but • Encourage the Title IV-E Clearinghouse to take many states are struggling to develop programs these cultural considerations into that meet the criteria for ongoing funding. account when reviewing services and • Provide prevention services and post- supports and determining whether they meet permanency supports to African evidence-based standards. American grandfamilies by leveraging Title IV-E • Educate the ten states that have not federal funding available through the Family yet taken the federal option to offer a First Act. Guardianship Assistance Program (GAP) • Do not deny prevention services about the many benefits of doing so, including to grandfamilies simply because its importance as a permanency path for the appropriate services they need are not African American children for whom adoption currently eligible under the Title IV-E program. and reunification with their parents are not Also, do not require kinship caregivers, birth options. As of May 2020, the ten states without parents, and children to accept services GAP are Arizona, Georgia, Kansas, Kentucky, that are not culturally appropriate, especially if Ohio, Mississippi, North Dakota, South Carolina, they have concerns that the prevention services Utah, and Wyoming. being offered will either be ineffective or • Advocate to improve access to Temporary possibly harmful. Assistance for Needy Family (TANF) child-only • License more relatives as foster parents by grants and to increase their dollar amounts addressing barriers in state licensing standards; so grandfamily caregivers can meet the needs
58 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture of the children they did not plan or expect • Collect additional data on children in foster to raise. Access may be improved through care with relatives and determine the simplified TANF child-only application forms; following for each category: more community outreach and education; and » Children who are diverted from the use of the good cause exemption allowing child welfare system - many state child caregivers not to assign child support collection welfare agencies are removing children to the state. from homes, finding relatives or kin, • Work to enact right to culture legislation for and then diverting those children children in foster care in each state . There are with little or no supports. No federal only four states - California, Colorado, Hawaii, data are collected from states on and Pennsylvania - providing a right to cultural these children. Agencies “divert,” despite heritage activities for children in foster care.69 the fact that they have placement and As explored in chapter 4, cultural identity for care responsibility. We need to capture children has many benefits, including mental these large numbers of diverted children health resiliency, higher levels of social well- to better understand this population, being, and improved coping skills. and whether they eventually enter foster • If the state has codified a child in foster care’s care. Disparities will likely emerge when we right to their cultural identity and heritage, identify the race of these children who are use it as a tool to ensure accountability in case not supported by the system. plans . » Children who exit foster care to • Advocate for protection against discrimination guardianship or adoption – AFCARS data based on hairstyles and hair texture by exist on the percentage of children exiting enacting the CROWN Act. The CROWN Act foster care who achieve these permanency is already law in California, New York, and goals, but not on their race. Information New Jersey, and has been introduced for on race will inform policy and program consideration in more than 20 state legislatures. responses to possible disparities. See www.thecrownact.com/ » Children who are reunified with their parents – AFCARS data are reported Data Collection Recommendations for for this category, but it is not reported Agencies and Advocates: by race. Again, information on race will • Collect more data on grandfamilies who are inform policy and program responses to not involved with the child welfare system, possible disparities. including their race data, to inform services » Children who are in the legal custody of and supports. Currently, only limited data the child welfare system with unlicensed exist. The U.S. Census Bureau collects data on kin and receive no foster care grandparents who self-identify as responsible maintenance payments – AFCARS does for grandchildren. Similar data are available not report how many children are with for the grandchildren of grandparents unlicensed kin or their race. Disparities will who are responsible for them. Both data likely emerge when we identify the race of sets include broad racial and ethnic breakdown, these children who are not supported by but do not include racial and ethnic breakdown the system. within categories such as poverty and disability. • Analyze the racial data of grandfamilies both This information is critical to informing services inside and outside the foster care system to and supports and identifying racial inform the assessment and plan noted above disparities. Absolutely no racial or demographic to address racial disparities . data are publicly available for other relatives, such as aunts or uncles, or the children they raise.
RECOMMENDATIONS 59 Acknowledgments
Generations United gratefully acknowledges and Design and Layout thanks the following dedicated individuals and organizations whose work and support made this Six Half Dozen Design Studio toolkit possible: www.sixhalfdozen.com • Christine Benslimen and Victoria Gray for Photo Credits generously sharing their life experiences as grandfamily caregivers; All photos included in this report without credit are • Anita Rogers for her expertise in writing much licensed stock photos. of the toolkit and providing thoughtful input and review for the rest; Disclaimers • Generations United’s Ana Beltran for authoring This toolkit was funded by the W.K. Kellogg several chapters, contributing general Foundation. We thank them for their support and grandfamilies content, and providing leadership acknowledge the ideas, findings and conclusions overseeing the toolkit’s compilation; presented in this toolkit are those of Generations • Terry Cross of the National Indian Child Welfare United alone and do not necessarily reflect the Association (NICWA) for authoring much of opinions of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. chapter 8; • Generations United’s Jaia Peterson Lent, Lucy SUGGESTED CITATION Kates, and Diane Roznowski for thoroughly reviewing the toolkit; Generations United. (2020). TOOLKIT African • The GRAND Voices network for inspiring, American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive informing, and reviewing the toolkit; Through Connection to Family and Culture. • Frank McCrea of the New York City www.gu.org. Grandparent Resource Center for reviewing the toolkit and providing information about the Center’s work to support African American grandfamilies; • Our partners in this racial equity project, NICWA and A Second Chance Inc.; • The W.K. Kellogg Foundation for their financial support for the GRAND Voices racial equity ©2020, Reprinting with permission only. project, which includes this toolkit and a parallel Generations United. www.gu.org toolkit for American Indian and Alaska Native grandfamilies.
60 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture Endnotes
1 Annie E. Casey Foundation. “Stepping up for Kids.” 2012. 19 Children’s Bureau. “The AFCARS report, Preliminary FY 2018 https://www.aecf.org/resources/stepping-up-for-kids/ estimates (No. 26).” U.S. Department of Health and Human 2 Ray, Rashawn. “Why are blacks dying at higher rates from Services, Administration for Children and Families. 2016. COVID-19?” Brookings. April 9, 2020. https://www.brookings. Accessed February 2020. www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/ edu/blog/fixgov/2020/04/09/why-are-blacks-dying-at- files/cb/afcarsreport26.pdf higher-rates-from-covid-19/ 20 U.S. Census Bureau. “Table S0901 – Children Characteristics, 3 Bertera, Elizabeth M., and Sandra Edmonds Crewe. 2018 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates.” “Parenthood in the Twenty-First Century: African American Retrieved February 2020. https://data.census.gov/cedsci/ Grandparents as Surrogate Parents.” Journal of Human table?q=S0901&tid=ACSST1Y2018.S0901; unpublished Kids Behavior in the Social Environment 23, no.2, (2013): 178-192. Count racial and ethnic data; U.S. Department of Health and 4 Frazier, E. Franklin. The Negro Family in the United States. Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Notre Dame, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1939. Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Children’s 5 Hook, Joshua, Don Davis, Jesse Owen, Everett Worthington, Bureau. “The AFCARS report, Preliminary FY 2018 estimates and Shawn Utsey. “Cultural Humility: Measuring openness to (No. 26).” 2019. Retrieved February 2020. www.acf.hhs.gov/ culturally diverse clients.” Journal of Counseling Psychology sites/default/files/cb/afcarsreport26.pdf There are limitations 60, no. 3, (2013): 353-366. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih. with AFCARS data. Children in relative foster care may be gov/23647387/ underrepresented: in some states, children must receive 6 Cultural Q. “About Cultural Intelligence.” Accessed May 13, foster care maintenance payments to be counted and most 2020. https://culturalq.com/about-cultural-intelligence/). children living with relatives do not receive this assistance; 7 Lawrence-Webb, Claudia and Joshua Okundaye. “Kinship and some states do not distinguish between licensed relative and Spirituality: Utilizing Strengths of Caregivers.” Journal of foster parents and non-related licensed foster parents. Health & Social Policy 22, no. 3-4, (2012): 101-119, https://doi. 21 NAACP. “Criminal Justice fact sheet.” Accessed April 2020. org/10.1300/J045v22n03_07. www.naacp.org/criminal-justice-fact-sheet/. 8 Harvard Graduate School of Education. “Religious Freedom: 22 U.S. Census Bureau. “Table S1701 – Poverty Inclusion, Exclusion, and the Role of Education.” April 27, Status in the Past 12 Months.” Accessed 2015. https://www.gse.harvard.edu/news/15/04/religious- May 2020. https://data.census.gov/cedsci/ freedom-inclusion-exclusion-and-role-education. table?q=poverty&hidePreview=false&tid=ACSST1Y2018. 9 Miller-Cribbs, Julie and Naomi Farber. “Kin Networks and S1701&t=Poverty&vintage=2018 Poverty among African Americans: Past and Present.” 23 Osterling, Kathy Lemon, Peter Allen Lee, and Alice Hines. Social Work 53, no. 1, (2008): 43-51. https://doi.org/10.1093/ “The influence of family reunification services on racial/ sw/53.1.43. ethnic disparities in permanency outcomes for children in 10 Child Welfare Information Gateway. “Kinship Caregivers and the child welfare system.” Journal of Public Child Welfare the Child Welfare System.” Factsheets for Families. May 2016. 6, (2012): 330–354; Quoted in Child Welfare Information https://www.childwelfare.gov/pubs/f-kinshi/. Gateway. “Racial Disproportionality and Disparity in Child 11 National Resource Center for Adoption. “Path to Positive Welfare.” 2016. Accessed May 2020. https://www.childwelfare. Adoption/Guardianship Outcomes Tip Sheet.” 2014. gov/pubpdfs/racial_disproportionality.pdf https://spaulding.org/wp-content/uploads/archive-pdf/ 24 Ibid. RespondToUniqueDynamicsKinshipCare9-4.pdf. 25 U.S. Census Bureau. “Table S0901 – Children Characteristics, 12 Leary, Joy DeGruy. “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome: 2018 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates.” America’s Legacy of Enduring Injury and Healing.” Milwaukie, Accessed February 2020. https://data.census.gov/cedsci/ Oregon: Uptone Press, 2005. table?q=S0901&tid=ACSST1Y2018.S0901 13 Dictionary.com. “Colorism.” Historical and Current Events 26 Pew Research Center. “A record 64 million Americans live in Dictionary. Accessed May 13, 2020. https://www.dictionary. multigenerational households.” 2018. Accessed April 2020. com/e/historical-current-events/colorism/. www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2018/04/05/a-record-64- 14 Merriam-Webster. “Colorism.” Accessed May 13, 2020. https:// million-americans-live-in-multigenerational-households/. www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/colorism. 27 Generations United. “Children Thrive in Grandfamilies.” 2016. 15 Quoted by Wills, Courtney. “Keke Palmer on Battling Colorism Accessed March 2020. www.grandfamilies.org/Portals/0/16- in Hollywood: ‘I didn’t see people with my complexion being Children-Thrive-in-Grandfamilies.pdf shown as beautiful.’” The Grio, April 2018. https://thegrio. 28 Children’s Bureau. “The AFCARS report, Preliminary FY 2018 com/2018/04/03/keke-palmer-on-battling-colorism-in- estimates (No. 26).” U.S. Department of Health and Human hollywood-i-didnt-see-people-with-my-complexion-being- Services, Administration for Children and Families. 2018. shown-as-beautiful/. Accessed February 2020. www.acf.hhs.gov/sites/default/ 16 Staples, Bryan. “The Radical Blackness of Ebony Magazine.” files/cb/afcarsreport26.pdf New York Times. August 11, 2019. 29 Generations United. “Children Thrive in Grandfamilies.” 2016. 17 Pilgram, David. “Brown Paper Bag Test.” Jim Crow Museum Accessed March 2020. www.grandfamilies.org/Portals/0/16- of Racist Memorabilia, Ferris State University. February 2014. Children-Thrive-in-Grandfamilies.pdf https://www.ferris.edu/HTMLS/news/jimcrow/question/2014/ 30 Ibid. february.html. 31 Ibid. 18 Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Center. “Children 32 Patrick, Stephen, Matthew Davis, C.U. Lehman and William in Kinship Care in the United States.” Accessed April 2020. Cooper. “Increasing Incidence and Geographic Distribution of https://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/10455-children- Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome: United States 2009 to 2012.” in-kinship-care#detailed/1/any/false/1757/any/20160,20161. Journal of Perinatology 35, no. 8, (2015): 650-655.
ENDNOTES 61 33 Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Center. “Racial, 50 Paris, Mimi. “Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; Not Just a Ethnic Disparities Persist in Number, Rate of Young People Soldier’s Problem.” Foster Focus 2, no. 6, (2012). https://www. Residing in Juvenile Justice Facilities.” Accessed April 2020. fosterfocusmag.com/articles/post-traumatic-stress-disorder- https://datacenter.kidscount.org/updates/show/260-racial- not-just-soldiers-problem and-ethnic-disparities-of-young-people-residing-in-juvenile- 51 The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. “Complex justice-facilities Trauma: in Urban African-American Children, Youth, and 34 Kelley, Susan J. “Caregiver Stress in Grandparents Raising Families.” March 2017. https://www.nctsn.org/sites/default/ Grandchildren.” The Journal of Nursing Scholarship 25, no. files/resources/complex_trauma_facts_in_urban_african_ 4, (1993): 331-337. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1547-5069.1993. american_children_youth_families.pdf tb00268.x; Jendrek, M.P. “Grandparents Who Parent 52 Generations United. (2017). “State of Grandfamilies Report Their Grandchildren: Circumstances and Decisions. The - In loving Arms: the Protective Role of Grandparents and Gerontologist 34, no. 2, (1994), 206-216. Other Relatives In Raising Children Exposed to Trauma.” 35 Hayslip, Bert and Patricia Kaminski. “Grandparents Raising 2017. www.grandfamilies.org/Portals/0/Documents/17- Their Grandchildren: A Review of the Literature and InLovingArms-Grandfamilies.pdf Suggestions for Practice.” The Gerontologist 45, no. 2, 53 Ibid. (2005): 262-269. https://doi.org/10.1093/geront/45.2.262; 54 The National Child Traumatic Stress Network. “Complex Miltenberger, Paula, Bert Hayslip, Bric Harris, and Patricia Trauma: in Urban African-American Children, Youth, and Kaminski. “Perceptions of the Losses Experienced by Families.” March 2017. Custodial Grandmothers.” OMEGA-Journal of Death and 55 Huntsville Madison County Public Library. “Celebrating Dying 48, no. 3, (2004): 245-261. https://doi.org/10.2190/ African American History and Culture.” Library Guides. ARUD-1PJD-MBJY-N76N. Accessed May 2020. https://guides.hmcpl.org/ 36 U.S. Census Bureau. “Table S0901 – Children AfricanAmericanHistory. Characteristics,2018 American Community Survey 1-Year 56 Smolicz, Jerzy. “Core Values and Cultural Identity.” Ethnic and Estimates.” Accessed February 2020. https://data.census. Racial Studies 4, no. (1), (1981): 75-90. https://doi.org/10.1080/ gov/cedsci/table?q=S0901&tid=ACSST1Y2018.S0901; U.S. 01419870.1981.9993325. Census Bureau. “Table S1001 – Grandchildren Characteristics, 57 Anderson, Maurice and L. Oriana Linares. “The Role of 2018 American Community Survey 1-Year Estimates.” Cultural Dissimilarity Factors on Child Adjustment Following Accessed February 2020. https://data.census.gov/cedsci/ Foster Placement.” Children and Youth Services Review 34, table?q=S1001&tid=ACSST1Y2018.S1001&vintage=2018 no. 4, (2012): 597-601; Usborne, Esther and Donald Taylor. 37 U.S. Census Bureau. “Coresident grandparents and their “The Role of Cultural Identity Clarity for Self-Concept Clarity, grandchildren: 2012.” 2012. Accessed April 2020. www.census. Self-Esteem, and Subjective Well-Being.” Personality and gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2014/demo/ Social Psychology Bulletin 36, no. 7, (2010): 883-897. p20-576.pdf. 58 National Association of Social Workers. “Institutional 38 Kelly, John. “Fewer Foster Youth, More Foster Homes: Racism and the Social Work Profession: A Call to Findings from the 2019 Who Cares Project.” The Chronicle of Action.” 2007. https://www.socialworkers.org/LinkClick. Social Change. October 10, 2019. Accessed February 2020. aspx?fileticket=SWK1aR53FAk%3D&portalid=0 https://chronicleofsocialchange.org/featured/less-foster- 59 Susan G. Komen. “Applying Culturally Responsive youth-more-foster-homes-findings-from-the-2019-who- Communications in Black and African-American cares-project/38197. Communities.” 2015. http://komentoolkits.org/wp-content/ 39 Ibid. uploads/2015/03/Applying-Culturally-Responsive- 40 Youakim v. Miller, 440 U.S. 125 (1979). Communication-in-Black-and-African American- 41 Murphey, David and P. Mae Cooper. “Parents Behind Bars: Communities-B-AA-Comm.pdf. What Happens to their Children?” Child Trends. October 60 Staples, Robert. “An Overview of Race and Marital Status,” in 2015, 3-4. https://www.childtrends.org/wp-content/ Black Families, ed. Harriette Pipes McAdoo (New York: SAGE uploads/2015/10/2015-42ParentsBehindBars.pdf. Publications), 269-273. 42 Ibid. 61 Cartaret, Marcia. “Health Care for African American Patients/ 43 Aspinwall, Cary. “Overlooked.” Dallas Morning News. June 22, Families.” Dimensions of Culture, last modified May 16, 2011. 2017. https://interactives.dallasnews.com/2017/overlooked/. http://www.dimensionsofculture. com/2011/05/health-care- 44 Dewan, Shaila. “Family Separation: It’s a Problem for US for-African American-patientsfamilies/. Citizens, too.” New York Times. June 22, 2018. https://www. 62 National Center for Cultural Competence. “Foundations: nytimes.com/2018/06/22/us/family-separation-americans- Conceptual Frameworks/Models, Guiding Values and prison-jail.html. Principles.” Georgetown University. https://nccc.georgetown. 45 NAACP. “Criminal Justice fact sheet.” Retrieved April 2020. edu/index.php. www.naacp.org/criminal-justice-fact-sheet/ 63 Mulvaney-Day, Norah, Margarita Alegria, Tara Earl, and 46 Annie E. Casey Foundation Kids Count Data Center. “Racial, Yaminette Diaz-Linhart. “Preferences for Relational Style with Ethnic Disparities Persist in Number, Rate of Young People Mental Health Clinicians: A Qualitative Comparison of African Residing in Juvenile Justice Facilities.” Retrieved April 2020. American, Latino and Non-Latino White Patients.” Journal of https://datacenter.kidscount.org/updates/show/260-racial- Clinical Psychology 67, no. 1, (2011): 31-44. and-ethnic-disparities-of-young-people-residing-in-juvenile- 64 GeoNet The Esri Community. “Writing for Your Audience– justice-facilities Readability Tests.” Last modified December 23, 2019. https:// 47 Wallace, J. M., & Muroff, J. R. (2002). Preventing substance community.esri.com/docs/DOC-12041-writing-for-your- abuse among African American children and youth: Race audience-readability-tests. differences in risk factor exposure and vulnerability. The 65 42 U.S.C. 671(a)(19). Journal of Primary Prevention 22(3), 235-261. 66 Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia. 48 Ibid. “Community Leadership Advocacy and Skills.” 2009. http:// 49 Generations United. “State of Grandfamilies Report - In www.fecca.org.au/images/stories/pdfs/CLASP.pdf loving Arms: the Protective Role of Grandparents and Other Relatives In Raising Children Exposed to Trauma.” 2017. www. grandfamilies.org/Portals/0/Documents/17-InLovingArms- Grandfamilies.pdf
62 TOOLKIT African American Grandfamilies: Helping Children Thrive Through Connection to Family and Culture 67 Osterling, Kathy Lemon, Peter Allen Lee, and Alice Hines. 69 Ariella Hope Stafanson. “Supporting Cultural Identity “The influence of family reunification services on racial/ for Children in Foster Care.” American Bar Association. ethnic disparities in permanency outcomes for children in November 21, 2019. https://www.americanbar.org/ the child welfare system.” Journal of Public Child Welfare groups/public_interest/child_law/resources/child_law_ 6, (2012): 330–354; Quoted in Child Welfare Information practiceonline/january---december-2019/supporting-cultural- Gateway. “Racial Disproportionality and Disparity in Child identity-for-children-in-foster-care/. Welfare.” 2016. Accessed May 2020. https://www.childwelfare. gov/pubpdfs/racial_disproportionality.pdf 68 Usborne, Esther and Donald M. Taylor. “The Role of Cultural Identity for Self-Concept Clarity, Self-Esteem, and Subjective Well-Being.” Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin 36, no. 7, (2010). https://doi.org/10.1177/0146167210372215.
For over twenty years, Generations United’s National Center on Grandfamilies has been a leading voice for families headed by grandparents, other relatives and close family friends. Through the Center, Generations United leads an advisory group of
organizations, caregivers and youth that sets the national agenda to advance public will A LEADING VOICE in support of these families. Center staff conduct federal advocacy, provide technical assistance to state-level practitioners and advocates, and train grandfamilies to advocate for themselves. The Center raises awareness about the strengths and needs of the families through media outreach, weekly communications and awareness-raising events. It offers a broad range of guides, fact sheets and tools for grandfamilies, which cover issues from educational and health care access to financial and legal supports and can be found at www.gu.org and www.grandfamilies.org. www.gu.org
ENDNOTES 63